The World Arcana
by Facelessmist64
Summary: Yaldabaoth was shattered, and the world was saved. Yet despite this, Akira couldn't help but feel like he had left things incomplete. With a desire to relive his time as a Phantom Thief, and undo the regrets he cannot swallow, he uses the power of The World Arcana to turn back the clock and fix his mistakes.
1. Chapter 1: A Sleepy Town

**The World Arcana**

A Persona 5 fanfiction by Facelessmist64

I do not own anything related to Atlas or the Shin Megami Tensei series.

 **Chapter 1: A Sleepy Town**

The night was silent.

No cars could be heard driving down the roads. Nobody was out and about at this time of night. There were no massive buildings whose lights could be seen from across the city.

The only sounds were the chirping of crickets, and even those gave the feeling of quietness. The only light came from the stars and the moon, which shone brighter than they ever did back in the city.

Everything was so much calmer here than in Tokyo... and yet, sleep evaded Akira Kurusu.

The young man grew to love the bustle of Tokyo, the loudness it gave off, and the vast amount of people who lived there. In spite of the reason he had to move to Tokyo in the first place, he found that he wished to return to the city he had spent his probation.

He chuckles. ' _That's Stockholm Syndrome, buddy.'_ He tells himself. Tossing and turning in his bed, he was unable to find comfort in his own bed.

Indeed, when the year had started he would have done anything to get out of the situation he faced, not knowing the grand adventure he was about to undertake.

He had made friendships to last the test of time, brought justice to some of the most crooked people in Japan, almost got assassinated by a politician, was erased from existence for a few hours, and stopped the apocalypse.

 _'Not to mention I got Satan to head-shot God to save Christmas.'_ He reminds himself, cracking a smirk.

And yes, he shot a false God.

It was an interesting year, to say the least.

And as guilty as he was to admit it, he wanted to go right back to then. When they were more than just a group of friends, when they were the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. As horrible as the year _should_ have been for him, and how he had nearly died on several occasions, he wouldn't doubt for even a moment that it was the single best year of his life.

At the same time... there was more than a few things he regretted while there. He could have been nicer to Mishima back then, he only treated him like a bother...

And it wasn't just him... he could have connected better with many more people he had formed bonds with. He was never able to help out Shinya or Hifumi with their parental issues...

And Akechi... he was easily his biggest regret. If only he reacted a second sooner... or if he researched the breach system Akechi had set off... then maybe he wouldn't have had to die.

He had too many regrets than he could count. The world was saved, and yet...

 _'I wish I could just do it over again. Talk about distorted desires...'_ He laments, moaning in annoyance and shoving the pillow into his face. After a moment, he sits up and tosses the pillow back onto the bed.

"I can't sleep." He whispers to himself, rising from his bed. After pacing around his bed trying to decide what to do, he eventually decides to get some air, and gets dressed in a winter coat to head out.

He slips out of his bed room and sneaks his way through the house. Spotting Morgana sleeping in his cat-bed, he makes sure to be extra quiet as he tip-toes down the hallway, making his way down the stairs, and reaching the kitchen. _'If Morgana caught me awake... Yikes, I'd never hear the end of it.'_

"Hmmmm..." Akira hears a low hum and the faint sound of footsteps. He quickly darts behind a corner, remembering his experience as a master thief. While he might not have the same powers he did in the Metaverse, that didn't mean he didn't pick up a few things about actual sneaking.

He peaks around from behind his cover to check the scene. The rather large form of a man, his father, was searching the fridge, looking for a drink. His dad reached in and took out a carton of milk, uncapped it, and drank directly out of the container. He took a long swig of it before putting the cap back on and shoving it back in the fridge. Afterwards he turned back and made his way into his bedroom.

Akira feels a chill go up his spine as his stomach lurches. _'I think I'll wait until we buy a new carton to eat cereal...'_

He sneaks through the rest of the kitchen and makes it to the front door. He cracks it open ever so slowly, trying to not make any noise. It barely makes a creak as he steps through the door frame. He stepped off of the property and onto the sleeping streets of the town.

There was no particular path planned out, so he just walked anywhere he could without leaving town. The night air refreshed him, the night sky capturing his imagination.

 _'It really is beautiful out here. Weather really cleared up since I've been gone.'_ He realizes, enjoying every bit of it. For about an hour and a half he walked, reflecting on his journey. Afterwards, he decided to head back home. As he's walking, he passes by the gas station. Normally, he wouldn't pay much attention to the place... but something catches his eye.

Further down the sidewalk he saw a glowing haze of blue. The light strikes him as familiar, and he approaches to investigate. As he got closer, he could recognize the blue outline of a door frame, and the form of a child standing beside it.

He couldn't help but smile when he realized who it was.

He walked towards his former warden, who returned his smile. "It has been quite some time since we have last seen each other." Lavenza said kindly, her piercing yellow eyes giving Akira a sense of strange comfort.

Akira gets onto one knee so as to be on the same eye level as her. "It's good to see you too, Lavenza." He said, happy to see someone he thought he had made his permanent goodbyes with.

At the same time, he knew that she couldn't have been here for a simple visit. If a Velvet Room attendant was here, it meant something was wrong. But he had gone through a lot of shit within the last twelve months, so he was pretty sure he was up to the task.

"So, you need me to take on some demonic overlord who wants to destroy the world?" He asks casually, kinda hoping she would say yes.

Lavenza gives a giggle, before shaking her head. "No, you needn't worry about such conflicts anymore. My master would like to have a word with you, should you wish to."

That last phrase: 'Should you wish to.' Confused him a bit. He was normally dragged into crap like this, so what did this mean for the teenager?

"So... wait. You mean it's totally optional? It's just like a... casual meet up?" He asks bluntly, put off by the change of circumstance.

Lavenza takes a moment to ponder this, as if trying to designate what this conversation was ranked as on the 'End of The World tier list.'

"Not exactly." She says after a moment of deliberation. "Instead, it is a discussion of yourself, and what you can do from here on out." She explains in her normal, cryptic tone.

Akira shook his head and takes a wild guess. "I'm guessing that it will make more sense once I see Igor?"

Lavenza gives a nod. "That would be preferable, yes."

Akira looks up at the blue doorway which he had entered so many times before. He should have been worried about what the meeting entailed, but the idea that his adventure wasn't quite over... That the Phantom Thieves could play another role...

He was just excited.

He looked back down to see that Lavenza had took her leave, having disappeared into thin air. He gives a sigh, not at all surprised by this. As he stands up he stares through the doorway with anticipation.

He steps in without hesitation.

~- _J_ -~

The darkness fades away and he finds himself in a faintly familiar space. A calm blue permeated the space, calming the teenager's nerves. He looked around, noticing the roof shortly above where he sat, and the cushioned seating around him. Instead of the prison he had once believed was his heart, it seemed he was in a limousine of sorts.

He looked ahead of him, only now noticing the long nose of an old acquaintance.

"Welcome... to the Velvet Room."

Akira smiled, glad to see the mentor who taught him how to break free from society. Granted, for most of the past year the Igor who he talked to was a fake, but it was _this_ Igor who taught him the only truth he needed.

"Hello, Igor." Akira said politely, looking around a bit more.

Igor chuckles. "Greetings. It is an honor to receive you back into this place of nurture." Igor says with his usual creepy smile.

Akira just shrugs. It really wasn't that big of an honor... "What's with the new place? I thought the Velvet Room was a prison."

"The Velvet Room takes whatever form is fitting of the current Wild Card's journey. Since the previous form the Velvet Room took has since faded from existence, I have taken the liberty to use the venue a previous Wild Card had as his mental escape." He explains, motioning to the limo they were sitting in. "I trust you find it suitable?"

Akira nods, not seeing any reason why this place would be somehow be detrimental or uncomfortable. "Yeah, I don't mind. It's pretty nice, honestly. So... what'd you call me over here for?" He asks, getting to the heart of the conversation.

"I have asked you here to discuss the fruit of your journey: the bonds that have strengthened your heart and unlocked the secret of true freedom." He starts, opening the palm of his hand to show a glowing blue card having appeared in it.

"That's..." Akira starts, recognizing the Arcana in his hand.

"Yes. At the end of your journey you had been prepared to give your life to protect the happiness and free will of a population in need of guidance, thus proving your dedication to humanity. Your spirit created a lasting bond with the very world itself, granting you infinite power in the form of the ultimate Arcana... The World."

Akira raises an eyebrow. "Yeah... but you already told me this. Lavenza said that The World would allow me to take on any challenges life threw at me. Is there anything else this thing can do?"

The young man had enough intuition to know where this conversation was heading, yet he still found Igor's ensuing chuckle unsettling.

"No Arcana has any strength in their own respect. Each are meant to develop a strength specific to the one that you have made a bond with. It is meant to nurture them, and provide comfort and respite from the hardships of the world, much like the Velvet Room itself." Igor explains, the card in his hand vanishing.

"However, producing a link with The World means the ultimate completion of one's journey, and the fulfillment and maturity of the ego. A bond of that scale... offers limitless power onto the beholder. The very world is yours to shape."

That part leaves Akira speechless. _'The world is mine to shape?'_ What did THAT mean?

He slowly leans forward towards Igor. "So you mean... I'm like a... a god or something?" He asks, dumbfounded at this revelation.

Igor chuckles a bit louder this time, shaking his head. "The World now wishes for a world with no gods, so your will is not absolute. However, should you wish to revisit that which the world has given you, it shall grant you the choice to relive the journey which has been completed."

Akira leans back in his seat, staring at the ceiling of the limo to process that information. Everything he had done over this past year, everything he had worked for, everything everyone else had sacrificed before...

He could wipe away with a wave of his hand.

"... Has anyone else done this before?" Akira asks quietly, not looking away from the ceiling.

"The one before you had declined this opportunity... though the one before him had done so hundreds of times before accepting their fate." Igor says, the smallest hint of sorrow in his voice after mentioning the latter.

 _'Accepting their fate? Did they die? I can't handle this right now...'_ He thinks to himself. This was sickening. Doing so would mean betraying everything they had worked so hard to reach. They had found their freedom after all, what more could they want?

 _'... But...'_

 _"_ I needn't an answer right away, you're the one with the power, after all..."

Akira looks back down at Igor. "What can I bring with me?"

After a moment of silence, Igor's ever present grin grows slightly wider. "Anything materialistic is too trivial for The World to take notice of, and you will have full access to every Persona you have ever accepted onto yourself. You will revert back to the same physical state as you were when your journey began, and all of the connections you have made with your confidants since then shall be erased, waiting for you to reforge them. Do you understand the terms of this agreement?" He asks, madness and intrigue brewing within his eyes.

Akira looks into them solemnly, and nods. He had to do this, he had left too many regrets behind to waste this chance. He had to fix his mistakes...

Even if he had to reset the world to do so.

Igor chuckles in delight. "Very well. Whenever you wish to travel back to the moment fate had begun spinning your tale... it shall be done."

The room began to shine, and Akira had to shut his eyes as the light became too much to bear. When he opened them again, he found himself standing on the sidewalk outside of the gas station. Dazed, he began walking back to his house.

The walk back was a mindless blur, and before he had even realized it he was pulling the covers on his bed over himself. He lay down and looked to the ceiling in thought.

Did he truly want to do this?

 _'Yes.'_

Would this bring him happiness?

 _'Yes.'_

Would he be satisfied after this was done?

 _"..."_

In spite of his doubts, his decision had been made. He closed his eyes, and felt an unnatural coolness envelope him. His mind became clouded, and sleep soon greeted him. As his conscience faded, he could swear he heard singing...

Like a poem for everyone's' souls...

 _~-J-~_

Akira's head was fuzzy. His senses were dulled and muffled as his conscience floated in his head. Soon he could hear the faint sounds of rolling metal. His face scrunches up as he slowly wakes from his paranormal slumber. Soon, voices added to the noise of the place, and light started to swell in his vision.

His body fully awake, and his mind fully aware, he rises his head and opens his eyes.

He was sitting in a train, it's destination: Tokyo.

In slight disbelief, he looks down at his pocket and reaches for his phone. He flips it open and checks the date.

 _April 9_ _th_

He stares blankly at the date for a while, before looking around him. People sat all around him talking about all manners of things. They didn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary.

 _Ding!_

 _Arriving shortly at: Tokyo. Approximate time: Five minutes._

Akira lets that sink in and looks out the window of the train. Before him was the grand city of Tokyo, the most populous city on Earth.

He felt a smile force itself onto his face. He was about to relive the golden year of his life.

In his content excitement, he let's out a sigh. He chuckles to himself. _'Well... time for another year of probation!'_

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

 **Author's Notes: Welcome to The World Arcana! If you have played Persona 5, then you'll know that this will detail my own imagining of a New Game+, but with some deviations from the plot. Akira will also be aware of this the entire time and will speak more than what little dialogue he has in the game.**

 **Also, if you're wondering why I chose "Akira Kurusu" over "Ren Amamiya", it's because I think Akira sounds cooler, and it's easier for me to remember.**

 **Hope you enjoyed reading so far!**


	2. Chapter 2: Old-New Friends

**Chapter 2: Old-New Friends**

 _April 12th  
_

"See ya later, Sojiro." Akira said, giving a carefree wave before heading out the door of LeBlanc. He had to hurry, today was his "first" day at Shujin Academy, after all...

"Don't call me by-" The ringing of the door bell signaled that Akira had already left. Sojiro sighs, and get back to washing the dishes. "Kids these days have no respect..."

As Akira was walking to school, he looks up to see dark clouds starting to cover the skies. He chuckles, knowing that this would happen. _'Oh no... I forgot my umbrella... I can't go back for it, or else I'll be late for school...'_

This was all planned out beforehand. Originally, Akira was going to remember an umbrella this time so he didn't get rained on, but he needed an excuse to meet Ann and Ryuji. In the end, all he could do was repeat the path he took before.

He went down the same path he took everyday: hopping on the train, getting off near the school, and walking the rest of the way. It began to rain once he'd got off the train, just like he remembered.

The rain got worse, so Akira took cover under a nearby store cover. Once he had taken cover, he waited for a few minutes until the rain cleared up. He waited for someone there.

As he expected, a certain blonde woman came to stand beside him under the cover, her hoodie obscuring the view of her head. A few moments passed before she pulled down her hood, revealing extremely long, golden locks of hair that nearly exploded out from it's hoodie confines.

She had sea-blue eyes that were troubled, yet seemed to only see the truth in things. She stood up normally, and yet it seemed as if she was posing for a photo shoot. She was beautiful, and she knew it.

Akira wanted to act cool. Given the second chance, he wanted to be more casual to who used to be his girlfriend. He was going to act casual, and give a good first impression to her now that the clock had turned back.

But just like before, his breath had been stolen from right under his nose by the soon-to-be Panther of the Phantom Thieves. He stood there dumbly, trying to figure out what to say.

Ann turns to look at him, leaving Akira pressed for something to say, and not just gawk at the young woman. Instead of being put off or offended in any way, she just offers him a small, genuine smile before looking back towards the street.

Silence prevailing, Akira gave up trying to speak up, and instead follows her gaze to the street. They stood their for a minute, listening to the rain fall.

 _'This isn't so bad.'_ He thinks, smiling in spite of his embarrassment. _'Being in silence is a bit better when you have good company.'_

A car pulled up to them. Akira was loathing this moment.

The driver's side window rolled down to reveal a grown man in his late thirties. He had a mop of curly-black hair, and a jaw line that made him look like the Crimson Chin. He pokes his head out of the window to address Ann, as if he had any right to talk to her.

"Good morning. You want me to give you a ride to school? You're gonna be late." Kamoshida was their first target, and boy did Akira hate his guts. What ticked Akira off the most about him, however, was just how _normal_ he seemed on the outside. Granted, most of their targets were like that, but Kamoshida took it to another level.

Every move he made seemed casual and innocuous, as if everything he did was perfectly fine. He walked as if he thought he was entitled to all he saw. He caused so much pain to the people in the school. To Ann, Ryuji, Mishima...

... Shiho...

Akira strengthened his resolve. _'I'll protect her. No matter what it takes, I'll stop Kamoshida beforehand, there's no way I'll let him-'_

"Do you need a lift, too?"

The question knocks him out of his thoughts and back to reality. He had forgotten Kamoshida asked him this. It must have been to draw away suspicion for Ann riding with him. It couldn't have been genuine.

Putting on a false smile, he waves the offer away. "I prefer walking." Was his otherwise weak excuse to get out of the situation. Without a response, Kamoshida rolled up the car door window and drove off.

Not a second later, a familiar blonde-haired delinquent ran by Akira, obviously targeting the gym teacher. He leaned forward, trying to regain his breath. "Dammit! Screw that pervert teacher!"

Akira acted dumb, leaning his head slightly to the side and asked; "Pervert teacher?" He felt his phone vibrate, and looked down. The phone opened up the MetaNav, and the words 'Sexually Perverted Schoolteacher' ran across the screen. His eyes widened as his mind put the dots together.

 _'So THIS was how we originally entered the Metaverse! We accidentally put in each of the keywords!'_ Akira realizes, a question he had long wondered having been answered.

Ryuji looked back at the transfer student, putting on a tough facade as he approached Akira. "What do you want? You plannin' on rattin' me out to Kamoshida?" He asked in a gruff voice, obviously seeing Akira as a threat.

After he had reset time, Akira knew situations like this would happen. That his friends who would have put their lives on the line for him would revert back to the point where they wouldn't know him, and some would even see him as an enemy. He knew this would happen, yet it still hurt to experience it again.

At least for Ryuji, he could stop the confusion more quickly than last time. "Sorry, who's Kamoshida again? I just moved here from the country, so I don't know many people here. We're both going to Shujin, right?" He asks, trying to act confused. _'Hopefully this will clear up any confusion.'_

Ryuji's face lights up in realization, any past aggression disappearing. "Ohhhhhhh! You're a transfer student, that explains it. Of course you didn't know who he was. Guy back there was Kamoshida, he's our gym teacher. He's a real bastard! Thinks he's the king of his own castle, or some shit!" Ryuji swears, hatred boiling in his eyes.

Another vibration sounded from the phone, this time sounding out the words; "Kamoshida, castle. Registration complete." Everything was washed in purple for a moment, and a sharp pain struck through Akira's head, one that he had experienced many times before. _'That confirms it. We did enter in all of the data on our way to Shujin. I don't know if this was the exact moment, but either way our entire adventure was sparked from this coincidence. What are the chances?'_

"Uuugh, My head hurts... Dammit... I wanna go home..." Ryuji groans, shaking his head. He turns back to Akira, offering a bashful smile.

"Sorry for... ya know. Getting up in your business like that. Name's Ryuji Sakamoto, what's yours?" He asks, trying to be sociable with the person he was previously trying to pick a fight with.

"Akira Kurusu. Nice to meet you." Knowing that he was reliving the moment he had meet his best friend, Akira couldn't help but smile. He knew how it would all turn out, and he was happy to give it another go-around.

Getting an idea, Ryuji snaps his fingers. "Say, the rain's letting up a bit. I know a shortcut to school from here, wanna come?" He offers, pointing his thumb to the backstreet behind him.

Once they go down to the school, their adventure in the Metaverse will begin anew, and he will meet Morgana again. This was the crossroads of fate, one with infinite choices and possibilities, and yet he knew that there was really only one path he would choose.

"Sounds good, lead the way!" Akira says happily, excited for each moment to pass by him again.

Ryuji pops a grin, and a bit of excitement enters his voice. "Cool! When we get their, I'll give ya a tour of the place. I know ALL the sweet hang-out spots around here." He says enthusiastically, excited to show his new friend around.

Internally, Akira chuckles. _'Maybe some other day, man. Today, it's time I renewed my vows, so to speak...'_

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: Chapter 2 up! Sorry that this one's pretty short, but I plan on making this fic focus each chapter on a specific moment that changes with New Game +. I wont write out entire confidant links, or anything like that, but instead focus on very specific re-imaginings of events that I think would happen if Joker remembered everything that happened after a playthrough. Sometimes chapters will instead be a bunch of little moments put together, since they aren't really long enough to make their own chapters.**

 **At the end of each chapter, I will take the time to respond to each of your comments and reviews. So if you have a question, ask away! I'll be happy to answer.**

 **Ey-Yuki**

Good Story Idea! This is a cool idea for a NG. It's like Playing the game but knowing the whole story. Btw, do the harem end. Story:8.5/10

 **Thank you for the review! I'm sorry to say but Akira won't have a harem ending in this story, but he will have an equally funny one. :)  
**

 **UknownHero**

This is gonna be awesome. There's only one other person that wrote a New Game For P5 before but they never made it past the first chapter so I'm excited for this.  
Keep it going, my friend!

 **You know I will! Part of the reason I began writing this was because no one else I saw wrote a new game + for P5. Thanks for the review!  
**

 **God Emperor Of GAR-halla**

Harem route for Akira. ;)

I'd to see someone actually do that and not have end up the same as in game.

 **Sorry, but I'm not particularly fond of that route. I'm not really bothered by anyone doing it or recommending it to me, but it's just not my particular cup of tea. But thank you for the comment, anyways!**


	3. Chapter 3: School Life

**Chapter 3: School Life**

 _April 12_ _th:_

"WHAT?! The hell, man! How much shittier can that asshole get?!" Ryuji nearly yells in the fast-food joint. He seems to have missed the... more literal interpretation of his question.

"Still eating, man." Akira jokes, eating the beef bowl at his own pace. After the earlier trip into Kamoshida's Palace, they were both left starving. Ryuji decided on a beef bowl place, and Akira agreed.

Ryuji's face scrunches up and he shakes his head. "Awww hell no, dude! That's not what I meant and you know it! That's just gross!"

"I wasn't the one who said it." Akira points out, seemingly unfazed by the conversation they were having.

"But you- Aww whatever!" Ryuji groans, giving up on that particular conversation. He starts eating his meal again. "So... you left your hometown, and ... your livin' here now, huh?" This was said between bites.

"Pretty much." The answer was simple, but not much else needed to be said. Looking down at his food, Akira takes another bite from his beef bowl.

They sat in silence for a minute. Ryuji looks up from his food, a somber look on his face. "... We might be more alike than I originally thought." He said suddenly, referring to their troubled pasts.

Akira thought on that for a moment. A flash of guilt hit him when he remembered his previous answer.

~-J-~

 _"What? Don't try to compare our circumstances. I've got it far worse than you know."_

~-J-~

"Yeah, I guess so."

He was a fool to assume Ryuji somehow couldn't understand his hardship. If anything, Ryuji probably had it even worse than him. Honestly, now that he thought about it, _everyone_ in the Phantom Thieves could use a hug.

"I guess it's how we're treated like a pain in the ass by the people around us, like we don't belong."

Akira looks over to him, trying to think of something to cheer him up. "Don't worry about it. In the end, it doesn't really matter how people see you. As long as you have fun along the way, it'll be a picnic!" Akira tried to convey what he had learned over his year at Tokyo, but it all came out wrong...

"Doesn't it, though? I mean, it's not like you can just ignore everyone, right? You'd pretty much just be cutting yourself off from society... I don't wanna do that." Ryuji asks. He wasn't an idiot, and Akira knew he wouldn't go down a path like that.

Akira began snapping his fingers as he tried to form a sensible statement. "That's not what I mean, we just... gotta live for ourselves." It was a simple phrase, and it held a simple wisdom. A wisdom Ryuji couldn't quite grasp yet.

"Huh? I don't get it."

Akira took a sip from the coffee he had ordered. Unimpressed, he returns his focus to Ryuji. "We shouldn't live our lives according to other people. We just need to cruise along, find people whom we can relate to, and live how we want to. In the end, nobody else can really tell you otherwise. It may sound weird, buy it really doesn't matter what other people think of us." As Akira said this with a straight face, Ryuji stared at him in awe.

Realizing he had rambled a bit, Akira blushes. "S-Sorry... Guess I kinda went on a monologue there..." He says bashfully, not used to showing his more philosophical side, even with the Thieves.

Ryuji didn't seem to mind. "Dude... You're like Confucius, dropping wisdom like that! That's pretty sick!" As he said this, he opens the box of ginger and puts some in Akira's bowl.

"... What are you doing?" Akira asks slowly, unsure of how to respond.

"You're bowl is criminally low on ginger! Don't worry about the cost, I'll cover it!" He says, trying to be nice. While Akira could appreciate the gesture, he knew that, if anything, _Akira_ should be the one footing the bill, due to how much money he was able to bring over from his previous adventure.

 _'Honestly, I'm probably set on cash for the whole year, let alone this meal.'_

Thinking on Ryuji's wisdom, Akira is reminded of the souvenir on his wrist, and smiled fondly as he gazed at the sports watch Ryuji had given him when he had left Tokyo. It was a sign that they would always have each others' backs.

 _'I'll always treasure it.'_

 _~-J-~_

 _April 13_ _th_

Akira leaned against the wall of the third-year hallway. He and Ryuji had tried to get info on the abuse cases involving Kamoshida... It ended as a bust, just like before. While he didn't expect it to be any different than before, he was still disheartened by how apathetic the volleyball team was.

Regardless of what they said, he knew that they wanted to be saved. They just didn't want to be on the receiving end of Kamoshida.

 _Ding, ding!_

 _"Attention, attention. All matches have concluded. Please get ready to go home for today..."_

 _Ding, ding..._

Not a second later after the announcement, his phone buzzed. He takes it out to see a message from Ryuji.

 **Ryuji: Dammit, we're outta time. How'd it go?**

 **Akira: Nothing yet, but I got a name to check out later. Yuuki Mishima.**

 **Ryuji: We'll have to talk to Mishima tomorrow. He was the kid Kamoshida spiked earlier, so he probably went home early. I think he's in your class.**

 **Ryuji: Mkay, let's regroup for now. See you in the courtyard?**

 **Akira: I'll be right there.**

~-J-~

Akira stood at the courtyard. Ryuji was the one who asked him to come here, but he knew Ann would show up first. He remembered how bitter the two were to each other before they became the Phantom Thieves.

 _'Hopefully I can dissolve the situation and get on better relations with her right off the bat.'_

Akira tried looking casual, so he leaned against the concrete column holding up the ceiling of the courtyard corner. It was a precaution so that he didn't look suspicious. He didn't wait too long until Ann showed up. She looked serious, but not angry or upset in any way.

"Can I talk to you for a sec...?"

Akira looked up from the ground, and gave her a small smile. "Sure, what's up?"

Ann waves her hand in reassurance. "It'll be quick."

She looks to the ground for a moment, contemplating what to say. She shakes her head. "Anyway, what's with you? Like, how you were late the other day was a lie and all... There's that weird rumor about you too."

Akira chuckles as if she told a good joke. "Which one? The whole school seems fond of thinking up new reasons not to talk to me."

Ann furrows her brow. "That's-"

"Whaddya want with him?"

The gruff voice belonged to Ryuji, who had just joined them. Ann answers the aggressive questions with an equally aggressive answer.

"Right back at you. You're not even in our class." She points out, putting Ryuji on the defensive.

Ryuji falters on his response for a moment. "... We just happened to get to know each other."

Ann is growing increasingly frustrated at the two troublemakers. "What're you planning to do to Mr. Kamoshida?"

This takes Ryuji aback, surprised Ann had managed to catch on to them. "Huh?! ... Oh, I get it. You're all buddy-buddy with Kamoshida after all." Ryuji says, practically spitting venom.

Having reached the core of the argument, Ann increases her aggression to Ryuji. "This has nothing to do with you, Sakamoto!"

Feeling like things will only get more heated from here, Akira steps in to break up the argument. "Okay, hold on! Fighting won't get anyone anywhere." He says, taking a step towards the both of them.

Ann turns towards him. "This doesn't have anything to do with you, either." She interjects, pointing a finger at him.

Ryuji decides to shoot back another remark. "If you found out what he's been doin' behind your back, you'd dump him right away."

This got Ann's attention in the wrong way, and caused Akira to cringe. "Behind my back...? What's that supposed to mean...?"

It was Akira's turn to be angry. "Ryuji! The hell, man? Don't go assuming things like that!" His protests were last thing Ryuji expected, or wanted. He rubs the back of his neck in guilty embarrassment, but didn't apologize.

Akira turns towards Ann. "Sorry for that. About me being late on the first day... I got lost and was embarrassed to admit it. I come from the country, you know? A huge city like this has got my head spinning. Sorry for lying to you and the class." He explains politely, giving a small bow to his classmate.

Ann was taken aback by the (seemingly) honest answer. After a few seconds to consider it, she seems to accept the answer. "I don't know how you could get lost that close to the school, but... whatever. Anyway, people are already talking about you two. I don't know what you're trying to pull, but no one's gonna help you... I'm warning you, just in case. That's all."

With that, she takes her leave from the two Metaverse users.

Akira wasn't exactly... thrilled with how things went. _'Second chance and still_ _there's things I wish I did differently.'_

Ryuji was left annoyed, and he half-heartedly kicks the ground in front of him once she was out of eyesight. "Why's she gotta be so aggressive all the time...?"

Akira scoffs at this. "I could say the same to you. You think Takamaki and Kamoshida are a thing? Where'd you get that idea?" He was rightly annoyed at his friend for being rude, seeing as he's a victim of rumors as well.

Ryuji quickly jumps to the defensive. "Well, you hear all the rumors going-"

"Rumors." Akira interrupts, trying to get Ryuji to see his point of view.

Ryuji thinks on it for a second. His facial expressions show that he is in conflict with himself. After a few seconds he sighs in resignation, realizing the truth.

"Yeah, yeah, I know where you're coming from. I..." He takes a few seconds to put his thoughts into words. "Me and Takamaki don't have the best history. We went to the same middle school, so we got to know each other a little bit. When high school started... Well, we had a bit of a falling out." He says, not very proud of himself.

"I guess... I'm still kinda ticked off about how things turned out. Guess believing some effed-up rumors about someone is easier if your mad at 'em..."

Akira never heard this before. _'Maybe I can help them be friends again without the Phantom Thieves being a part of it.'_

Not knowing what else to talk about, he asked the only question that came to mind. "So what did you guys argue about?"

Ryuji just groans. "I forgot what it was a while back. Must've been a pretty stupid reason if I can't even remember what it was..."

Thinking on this, Akira nods. "Probably, but it's nice to argue about stupid things. Shows that there isn't much else to argue about." He reasons.

Ryuji gives a curious glance. "Even if that's the shit you stop talking to each other for?"

This stopped Akira in his tracks. _'Ummmm... Maybe not, then.'_ After some consideration, he just shakes his head. "Well, maybe things could have gone better than it did, but that doesn't mean you can't be friends again." After he said this, another thing to take into consideration crosses his mind. "It just depends if you and her want to be friends again."

That thought scared him a little. What if it was bad enough that they _didn't_ actually want to be friends in the first place?

The thought was cut short as Ryuji shakes his head. "Course I do. It's just... with everything happening right now, I'm thinkin' it's a little too hectic to start focusin' on stuff like that. Maybe I'll talk to her after we deal with Kamoshida." He suggests, Akira nearly giving a sigh of relief as his previous concerns were dealt with.

"Sounds good."

A thought crossed Ryuji's mind. "Hey, it's almost time to go. Wanna try and find Mishima? He might not have been sent home early, so we might catch him at the entrance."

Akira gives a nod, and the two began walking down to the school entrance.

 _'Things could have turned out better, but at least I got to know Ryuji a little better.'_

 **Kindness increased! Already Max...**

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: This chapter is an example of the layout of the story and how I plan to write it from here on out. It will be chronological, and will focus on specific moments in the story instead of going through the entire thing. I hope you guys like some of the actual elements of the new game + I threw in there. :)**

 **Now here's the review.**

 **fatty635:**

I like this idea for the story. I wanna see where you take us as I've always thought of how new game would be if it affected the story. Like if the protagonist was aware of the whole sorry going again but retaining his power.

 **I'm not going to spoil anything, but several important story elements will be significantly changed as the story progresses, since Joker can plan ahead for it. I'm hoping you'll like it.**

 **Thank you all for reading and see you next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4 Part 1: Shiho

**Chapter 4 Part 1: Shiho**

 _April 14_ _th:_

It was the end of Thursday, and students were filing out of the building as fast as they could. They had all made plans with their friends that day.

Except Akira Kurusu, his day was supposedly a blank slate... but in reality, he had a full plate on his hands. He had to meet up with Ryuji about options on how to take down Kamoshida and catch Ann at the train station. There was one thing more important than either of those things, however. Today...

 _'Today is the day Kamoshida is going to sexually assault Shiho.'_

He needed to tail Shiho until right before that moment, and even then he had to time it perfectly or else they could get expelled on the spot, arrested, or he could just look like a maniac. If he messed up anything, that was it. No second chances, no leading the Phantom Thieves, no way to stop Shido or Yaldaboath from fulfilling their plans.

 _'Let's do this.'_

He walks through the halls, eventually reaching the hall leading to the courtyard. Several vending machines lined the walls here, making it a fairly popular hang out spot. As he gently waded through the small crowds, he eventually reached the courtyard entrance. He was unable to pass through, however, as a familiar face stood in the doorway, looking at her phone.

Akira walked up to Shiho, stopping and hoping to get her attention. He gives a small wave. "Uhh, hey."

Shiho took her gaze away from her phone, looking towards the nearby voice. Akira meet her eyes and was stricken by just how _defeated_ she seemed. She had a black eye, wore a leg brace, and her eyes... They just looked dead. _'No matter what happens, I won't regret trying.'_ He resolves, prepared to save the woman he wished he could have gotten to know better.

She looked confused, and slightly annoyed. "... What?"

Realizing he had remained silent, Akira mentally kicks himself and his social awkwardness. Before he could explain, Shiho picks up on it herself. "Oh... I'm in the way, aren't I? Sorry..."

Waving it off, Akira focuses on a different, more pressing matter. "No problem, but... are you okay? Are you hurt?"

The question surprises her and leaves her without an answer. "Huh...? Um, well..." She remains silent.

 _'... Didn't think I'd get an answer. I shouldn't try to make this any harder for Shiho, anyways.'_

"Never mind, I shouldn't pry." He quickly backtracks, trying not to scare her off.

There was silence for a moment.

She was the first to speak up. "Hm, you don't look familiar. Could you be that transfer student from Class D?"

Akira gives a small chuckle. "Yep, I'm _that_ guy." His reputation preceded him, and he knew it. At this point, all he could do was laugh.

Her expression changes from one of indifference to concern. "Um, this might not be any of my business, but don't let the rumors get to you, OK...?"

Giving a smile, Akira shakes his head. "They don't bother me."

Shiho gives a nod. "I'm glad to hear that. I've helped with a similar situation before... My best friend is often misunderstood, too. All because of her looks..." She looks even more crestfallen after saying that, if that was at all possible.

Akira cringes, not sure what to say to make her feel any better. He knew exactly what he would say if it were, say, Ryuji, Ann or Makoto. He got to know them so well he feels like he could tell what they would say before they even said it.

 _'But I know almost nothing about Shiho, what do I say...? God, Akira. A year of being a charismatic thief of justice and you still can't keep up a conversation... Guess you have better ears than you do a mouth.'_

"Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to drag on like that."

The apology cut Akira out of his thoughts, and returned him to reality. Wanting to disperse the gloomy mood, he waved off her concern. "No! I'm... happy to lend an ear, and... thanks. For what you said earlier, I mean. It means a lot to me."

For a split second, Akira could have sworn that he saw a shadow of a smile on her face as he said this. Pleasantly surprised, he could feel himself grow happier and more excited from this exchange.

 _ **Kindness Increased!**_

"Thank you." She says, satisfied with this interaction. She had been meaning to talk to him, anyways. "Anyway, I have to go to practice... I'll see you around."

Akira smiles back, the purpose behind his actions renewed. "Yeah, see you later." With that, the volleyball athlete took her leave, the young thief free to travel to the courtyard.

Happy at the encounter, Akira continues forward to rendezvous with Ryuji about the track team.

 _'Kamoshida probably targeted Shiho after Ann turned him down over the phone, and that didn't happen until after I got to the subway after talking with Ryuji, which means I still have a bit of time to spare until then. I probably won't be able to have that heart to heart with Ann, then, but that's fine as long as Shiho stays safe.'_

Keeping this in mind, Akira moves onward, without doubt or hesitation.

~-J-~

Reaching the peaceful hangout spot he had went to dozens of times before, he saw a familiar head of bleached hair by the vending machine. His most trusted man stood irritated, nearly defeated as their efforts have so far been for naught.

As Akira approached, he could hear Ryuji mutter his discontent from a few feet away. "Dammit. What the hell..."

Hanging his head, Akira decided to ask the obvious, despite knowing the answer. "... Did you find someone?"

Ryuji looks glumly over to his partner-in-crime, wondering if he was being serious. "Is that what it looks like?"

Akira shakes his head, not really expecting any other answer. "No, just wanted to get it out of the way."

Ryuji punches the vending machine in anger, profoundly confused at the apathy of the volleyball team. "All of 'em kept sayin' the same shit Mishima was talkin' about...! Kamoshida had to have told 'em something! At this rate... it looks like we'll have to go to him directly... "

Knowing what they had to do, Akira played dumb for the sake of the conversation proceeding naturally and so that he didn't let out any more than he should have known. "What do you propose?"

Ryuji stops to think about this for a second. "I don't know, but... No way I'm gonna give in like this! Can you think of anything?"

Putting a hand on his chin, Akira pretends to think of a solution. "Police are a no-go, and I don't think punching him into next week is gonna help... You know what?" With outstretched arms, Akira strikes a dramatic pose. "I say we strike down the king, in all his glory."

Ryuji's eyes widen, knowing what he was getting at. "The king...? You mean that other world's Kamoshida? I didn't think of that, but... is there any meaning to-"

"I finally found you..."

Akira can't help but smile as the familiar voice reaches them, a black cat soon approaching them trying to go for a dramatic reveal.

Ryuji looks around, trying to search for the owner of the voice. He gives up, looking to his friend to make sure he wasn't hearing things. "... You say something?"

The black cat leaps onto the table between them, a disgruntled look on his face. "Don't think you can get away with not paying me back for helping you."

Ryuji recoils at the talking cat in front of him. He seems ready to freak out until he recognizes the familiar voice. "That voice... Is that you, Morgana!?"

Unconcerned by his surprise, Morgana continues his complaint. "How dare you, up and leaving me the other day!"

Still taken aback by this new development, Ryuji focuses on one very important aspect of this conversation. "The cat's talkin'!?"

Morgana whips his head around to Ryuji. "I am NOT a cat! This is just what happened when I came to this world! It was a lot of trouble finding you two."

"Wait, you came to our world!?" Ryuji asks. Suddenly, he lets out a loud gasp, as if he just realized something incredible. "Does that mean you've got a phone!?"

Akira mentally facepalms at his friend's antics. _'He's a cat, Ryuji. Besides, that's not really that big a deal...'_

Morgana lifts his chin into the air, a move that screams superiority. "You don't need one when you're at my level. I did get pretty lost making my escape, though..."

Ryuji doesn't let up his volley of questions. "That aside, why can you talk!? You're a cat!"

"How should I know!?"

Ryuji shakes his head, looking towards Akira for confirmation that he wasn't crazy. "You hearin' this, too...?"

Everything goes silent as Akira refuses to meet Ryuji's eyes, instead opting to look towards the ground. Tension increases as his question goes unanswered, and the soon-to-be leader offers no other assurances.

Ryuji grows more and more worried by his friend's silence. "Uhh, dude?"

Silence continues as Akira stands in silence, almost as if he died standing. After what felt like an eternity, he raises his gaze to meet Ryuji's, a fierce look in his eyes giving away the intent to give a powerful message to the two Phantom Thieves. With confidence and gusto, he delivers his message...

"... Meow?"

Both Ryuji and Morgana give a collective groan of annoyance, Ryuji in particular sounding hysterical. "This is no time to be jokin' around!"

Akira throws Ryuji a serious look. "Impossible. There is always time to be joking around!"

Ignoring the two of them, Morgana tries to continue his point. "You guys are having a rough time of it, hm? I heard you mention something about witnesses."

Thinking Morgana meant it as an insult, Ryuji tries to ignore him. "Oh, shuddup."

Morgana becomes more smug, the remark confirmed his theory. "You know, I could tell you a thing or two about what to do about Kamoshida. You were pretty close just a moment ago."

Ryuji has an interesting reaction that seems to be a mixture of distaste and interest. "God, that condescending attitude! This thing's gotta be Morgana!"

Cracking his cool exterior, Morgana flares up at this comment. "You were still doubting me!?" He yells, unhappy at the delinquent.

Ryuji lunges forwards, shaking his hands in a 'quiet' motion. "Ack...! Quiet down!"

As Ryuji made this comment, a group of students walked by, complaining about searching for a lost cat. Apparently Ryuji heard them, too. "Meow...? Does that mean only us two can understand what you're sayin'?"

Morgana licks his paw, already accepting his cat form. "Looks like it."

Ryuji's just left baffled, before getting back at the matter at hand. "What the hell's goin' on...? Anyways, what you were talkin' about earlier... Is it for real?"

Morgana scoffs, unimpressed with Ryuji. "You're quite the skeptic for being an idiot."

Deciding to ignore the remark in exchange for the chance at info, Ryuji questions him more. "Hey, tell us more. Then again, this probably ain't the best place..." Ryuji quickly grabs Morgana by the scruff of his neck, holding him out for Akira to take. "Here, stick it your bag for now! It should be just small enough to fit!"

Morgana begins squirming in his grip, startled by the sudden change in position. "Hey! How dare you treat me like-"

Akira tunes out the rest and gently places Morgana in his bag for easy transport and concealment. They began traveling to the rooftop, where their objective to steal Kamoshida's treasure would come to light. Honestly, the entire conversation just sorta passed by, before he knew it it was about time to go home.

But he couldn't do that just yet. He had a student-teacher meeting to crash...

~-J-~

It had been nearly half-an-hour after school ended, and few students were left in the halls. Those who were still left were probably a part of one of the sports teams, or one of the clubs. On the second floor hallway, a blue-haired young man approached a fellow member of the volleyball team.

"Suzui... Are you leaving...?" He obviously dreaded what he had to say.

She turns towards one of her few friends. "What is it...?"

Mishima looks to the ground. "Mr. Kamoshida's asking for you... He's in the PE Faculty Office."

Her face drops even further. Fear could be detected from her features. "What did he say?"

Mishima shakes his head, unable to think of any advice or warning to give to his friend. "... I don't know. Well... I have to go." The young man runs off, trying to reach the escape of his home and leave the oppressive dungeon that was this school.

Shiho looks to her shoes as if they will offer her words of advice, before moving onward. As she makes her way to the faculty office, a lean youth steps around the corner, happening to overhear the conversation they had just moments ago. He follows from a sizable distance, so that he doesn't get noticed.

As Akira walked on, he noticed a mic stand standing by his homeroom. He smoothy grabs it as he walks by, preferring to have a decent weapon close by if Kamoshida decided to pick a fight.

After a short while, Shiho and her unknown follower reach the PE faculty Office, which pretty much served as Kamoshida's personal office. She stood at the door, frozen for a few minutes before she opened the door, and entered.

The risk of being found out gone, Akira runs up to the door and whips open his phone. He quickly clicks to the camera, and then to video. He lays the mic stand on the wall beside him and presses close to the door with his phone, waiting for something to happen.

A minute or two go by as all he could hear were both of their voices muffled by the door, making it impossible to hear exactly what they were saying.

 _Click!_

Knowing the meaning of that sound Akira quickly tests the door knob, only to find it locked. He whips out his Eternal Lockpick and gets to work before anything can happen. Working the lock as fast as he can, he's rewarded by a second click and his own sigh of relief. With this complete, he presses against the door and continues to listen.

He wanted to bust open the door and stop Kamoshida now, but he knew that if he did it prematurely he would have zero evidence against him and he could get expelled for some bullshit reason. Hell, if he did it too early he might not stop Kamoshida's advances towards her at all. Patience was key, even if he didn't like it.

Silence continued, Akira closing his eyes to focus completely on hearing what was happening.

"No!"

Akira's ears perked, and his grip on the door handle tightened.

"STOP!"

Knowing that this was the moment, Akira slams open the door and confronts the bastard. Upon entering the scene, he's left disturbed as he sees the PE teacher pinning Shiho against the wall of the cramped office, obvious in his intentions.

Kamoshida's left speechless at having been caught red-handed. Before he can say anything, Akira raises his phone and shows what he had done. "You're being recorded right now! Let go of Suzui or else I'll call the police and present this to them as evidence!" He did all he could to put as much power into his voice as possible.

Kamoshida's shock quickly turns to fury as he completely turns to face the student, letting go of Shiho in the process. "Why you...!" He takes a stomp towards Akira, who takes a step back towards the hallway.

Akira makes his intentions clear. "Take another step towards me and I'll run through the halls, screaming your crimes along the way!" This declaration freezes Kamoshida in place, forcing him to think of a way out of this. He quickly grabs the door again, holding the door in a position to be closed instantly in case Kamoshida lunges for him. Akira decides to press the matter before Kamoshida can gather his thoughts.

"I'll cut you a deal, asshole. Let go of her, and I'll keep my mouth shut about all this to the police, I'll even delete the video. But you WILL let her go, and the both of us will walk out of this school without another move from you. Kapishe?" Putting on a mask of strength, Akira tries to keep the conversation in his advantage. Behind that, though, he was more terrified than he ever was in the Metaverse.

Kamoshida's face contorts further in rage, furious that a second-year with a criminal record was the one who had dirt on him. "Damn punk! Why the hell should I listen to you!? What's to stop me from doing it anyway?" Akira visibly recoils, causing the PE teacher to smirk, thinking that he regained control of the situation.

Looking to the back of the room Akira could see Shiho pressing herself against the wall, her eyes filled with terror. This was a hostage negotiation, and he needed to give Kamoshida enough reason to let the two of them go. He quickly thinks of a counter-point, but he knew saying it would taste like venom.

 _'If I'm going to save Shiho... I'll need to go through this logically, and use reasoning that makes sense to and holds merit for Kamoshida. This is gonna suck...'_

 _ **This is a tense situation...**_

 _ **You're astounding Courage and Knowledge allow you to see the greater good of you're actions, and commit to them!**_

"Nothing, but it doesn't matter if you do, anyways." The statement shocks the other two in the room.

Shiho becomes even more shaken by this comment "Huh...?" Akira already felt guilty by his insensitive comment. She was already traumatized by this event, and his comment probably made it even worse...

 _'I know that, but it's the only way I can think of to stop this bastard. I just... I just need to sort this out now, and the results will be worth it.'_

"What do you mean, 'It doesn't matter?' Then the hell's the point of you coming here!?' Kamoshida yells, beginning to consider the possibility that maybe the kid _was_ a sociopath like some of the lies he forced Mishima to say was.

Akira keeps a straight face, doing everything he could to settle this peacefully. "It doesn't matter because no matter what you do you'll end up behind bars. If you keep good on your threat, then the police will have irrefutable evidence of what you did and you'll serve the entire rest of your life in jail. Even if you don't, the police will still have enough evidence to conduct an investigation that will end in your arrest. You starting to get it yet? Even if I don't give the police the video, if you do _anything_ to hurt Suzui any further, you're screwed. My offer's the only thing you got."

That statement was the final nail in the coffin. Backed into a corner and caught red-handed, there was no argument that Kamoshida could think of to get himself out of this situation.

Except, of course, to accept the deal.

It was his only option and yet he refused to believe it, opting to instead stay silent. His pride must have been too great to admit his defeat. Joker didn't have that kind of patience.

"I'll give you ten seconds to let Shiho go before I leave and present the evidence. Ten..."

"CAN IT!" Unwilling to listen to him, Kamoshida cuts his countdown short. He turns towards Shiho, finally giving up. "Get out!" He yells, going to the opposite wall and leans against it to allow her space to leave.

Despite this, however, the shock of the entire ordeal renders her paralyzed, frozen in her spot in the corner. Kamoshida looking like he's about to lose it, Akira interjects before anything else can happen. "Come on, Suzui. Let's go, it's over now."

After a moment of uncertainty, she takes a step forward, and another, and another until she reaches the doorway. Everything went as planned, and Akira turned his back to leave the room with Shiho.

Akira heard a stomp behind him and a hand grab his shoulder. Before he could process the room spin around him, he heard Shiho scream and felt himself get slammed against the wall. He quickly realized the PE teacher had pinned him against the wall, pure fury in his eyes.

With his free hand, Kamoshida opens his palm, waiting for Akira to give him something.

" _Give me the phone._ "

He said it in a dangerously low tone, one that gave away his violent intent should Akira not ablige. Without hesitation or fear he handed the phone to him, not really caring either way. Kamoshida quickly released him to focus on the phone.

Typing at the speed of sound, he quickly got done with what he was doing and tossed the phone back to Akira, who snatched it out of the air. Confused, the student looks down at his cell to see a gear turning and a loading bar going across the screen. In an instant he realized what had happened.

 _'He wiped my phone! Damn, that was fast! Argh, I'm going to have to get every one back in my contacts list.'_

The sound of the PE teacher throwing himself back into his chair snapped him out of his thoughts. "We're done here! Get out!" He yelled as he turned his attention to the computer in front of him.

The two students, who now kept an eye on Kamoshida as they walked out, left the room as the situation was finally defused. After they closed the door and walked back into the hallway, Akira let out a loud sigh of relief. _'I didn't expect him to lunge just then. Thankfully he was just deleting the video, like we agreed. Too bad for him the video won't matter anyways, because he'll be confessing his crimes of his own accord after the Phantom Thieves are done with him. Game over, creep.'_

He turns his attention to Shiho, who stood there frozen in place, trying to process everything that had happened. "Hey, are you alright? Did he hurt you at all?"

She remains silent, still paralyzed.

"Suzui? Please, talk to me." He says, trying to calm her down. ' _Should I get her to the hospital?'_ Her expression was similar to the one she wore earlier, but it was so much worse. It went beyond defeated and just looked like her mind itself was damaged.

"I..."

Akira perks up at the response. "Yeah, what is it?"

"I... don't... matter, do I...?"

Akira's stunned by this response, not sure what she meant. "What...? No... No no don't say that. That's not true!" He tries to be supportive, but he quickly realized that he never helped his friends out with a matter like this.

Shiho shakes her head, not convinced. "... You said so yourself... It didn't matter if he hurt me... Just so long as you had your proof."

The response startled him. ' _That's not what I meant! I was just trying to get Kamoshida to give up! I never meant it for real! I was trying to protect you!'_

He knew the words to say, but they never left his head. Try as he might, he couldn't say the words he tried desperately to get out. "I... No... That's not..."

He got no farther, as Shiho walked away slowly, each step seemingly pained. She seemed like a zombie, a person who had already died yet was still walking. No words came to him, nothing more to help or console her.

After she left his view, he was left beating himself up over his decisions. As he tried to figure if he could do anything better, he realized he left the mic stand from before at the PE Faculty door. He took it and returned it to where it was before, outside of Class D.

He leaned against the wall, trying to think of _something, anything_ that he could have done differently. _'Did I do the right thing? It might have been easier to let it be...'_

The moment he thinks this he throws it out of his mind, he himself ashamed of that thought. _"Damn it, Akira, Snap out of it! Of course this didn't have a totally happy ending to it, how could it have? You're the God damn leader of the Phantom Thieves, you protect those who can't protect themselves, you think of others without considering gratification. Regardless of what happened, I managed to prevent her from suffering a far worse fate, and now tomorrow she won't try to do anything rash. You did your job, now go home and get some rest. You did the right thing.'_

He went off to the subway station, the walk there went by in a flash. As he reached the station, something surprised him.

Ann was there.

She was crouched on the floor, presumably having jut gotten the call from Kamoshida. _'But wasn't that before...? Oh, whatever. I'll think on it later.'_

"Shiho's... Starting position..." She muttered, anguished over the predicament she was in.

Akira approached her, and as soon as Ann noticed him she jumped to her feet, startled and embarrassed. "Wait... Were you listening?"

Akira rubs his neck, a bit embarrassed himself. "Not on purpose." He tries to reassure. Doesn't really work.

"Haven't you heard of privacy?" She says, annoyed at him.

"Privacy...? Aren't we in the middle of the station?" Akira points out, noting the large amount of people around him.

Ann goes silent, considering that. "... No, I was out of line. Sorry." She wipes away a tear from her face before continuing. "So how much did you hear...?"

Deciding to play it safe about his encounter earlier, he stays a little vague. "Something about a friend."

"Shiho..." She mutters, thinking Akira didn't hear him. She tries to put on a straight face, as if to assure him it's nothing to get involved in. "It's nothing at all. Nothing..." Her facade fails her as new tears well up in her eyes, and she runs off.

"Wait-" He gives up calling out to her, remembering how he did this last time. "Here we go again!" With that, he jogs after her, determined to hear her out.

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: After nearly two months, I'm back! I would say school has been taking time out of writing, but really I've been taking a hiatus to binge some video games. To make up for the long delay, today will be a double upload! (It was originally meant to be one chapter, but it dragged on for so long I realized it would just be a pain to read on one page. Seriously, I think these two parts are long than the whole rest of the fic.) Expect the second part to be posted in a few hours as I wrap some details up.  
**

 **Until then, let's read some reviews!**

 **GARNiDELiA:**

I wonder if Akira's gonna try and keep things the way they are or if he's gonna end up derailing everything lol. Chaos theory is such a cool theme in time travel stories which endears them to me. Your actions will have consequences. Anyway, it's great so far. I'm looking forward to read more! I hope you update frequently!

 **Yeah, the consequences are about to reach Akira, and he's about to realize he has to be much more careful from here on out. Sorry for not updating much!**

 **tanithlipsky:**

very good  


 **Thanks!**

 **Well, see you guys in a few hours!**


	5. Chapter 4 Part 2: Time

**Chapter 4 Part 2: Time  
**

 _April 15_ _th:_

It was 8:22, and today it was Mr. Ushimaru's turn to teach the class. He was saying saying something about the government, but Akira couldn't pay attention. An air of dread hung around his head as the day dragged on. _'I don't understand... I stopped everything from happening yesterday, so everything should be good... Right?'_

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shake this uneasy feeling. Something was wrong, horribly wrong.

"You made up your mind yet?" Akira nearly jumped out of his chair as Morgana appeared from inside his desk.

"Jesus Christ, Morgana! You scared the shit out of me!" He furiously whispers, annoyed that he forgot Morgana would accompany him to school from now on.

Morgana ignores this to continue his point. "No matter how much thinking you do, there's only one option. You'd be better off just listening to me."

Realizing that he never figured out how Morgana was able to sneak into his desk, he decided to ask now. "How the heck did you sneak into my desk?"

"Hm? Did I just hear a cat just now?" The teacher asked, looking around. The whole class picks up on this, and look around as well.

Realizing the room's increased attention, Morgana retreats further into Akira's desk. "M-Meow!"

 _'Hm. 'I'm not a cat' my ass.'_ Akira thinks, horrified at the prospect of a human Morgana, running around and causing havoc. _'On the other hand he could just turn out to be a kid, or something. That wouldn't be so bad.'_

"Could that rumored cat be somewhere nearby...?" Mr. Ushimaru wondered aloud. Realizing this derailed the class, he quickly regained control of the class. "Settle down! We're in the middle of an important lecture!"

He felt his phone go off, and he checks to see who it is. It was Ryuji.

 **Ryuji: It's no use... I can't think of any other way...**

 **Akira: You cutting class?**

 **Ryuji: I can't deal with that shit right now. I mean, what're we gonna do about Kamoshida?**

 **Ryuji: Do we really gotta go along with what that cat says?**

 **Ryuji: Urgh, that damn furball...**

Looking crestfallen, Morgana speaks again. "If he only knew I'm reading this, too..."

 _'It probably wouldn't have changed anything.'_ Akira thinks, knowing the two too well. Akira shakes his head, but the air of dread just seemed to get thicker...

A male student suddenly stood up, gaping at the window, terrified at what he saw. "Hey... What's that...!?"

Mr. Ushimaru glares at the student. "Enough! This is a classroom!"

Akira recognizes this exchange, and his heart stops. The world around Akira stops, his dread having taken form, the worst possible outcome having come to light. He leaps from his desk and runs to the door, going as fast as his legs could go.

"Wait... She's going to jump...!"

"Suzui...?"

"Shiho...?"

"Hey! Stay in your seats! Do not step foot outside this room!"

All of these voices he heard, and yet he ignored them all as he ran out the door. He could swear his heart still hadn't beaten yet, his face went white as a sheet. Nothing changed when he looked out the window. There she stood on the roof, in the exact location as before, about to make a horrible mistake.

 _'No! Oh God no! Why!? Why didn't anything change!? Oh God why didn't anything change!? Was...? Was everything for nothing!? No, no it can't be!'_

"No...!" In a split second second he looked around, trying to find a way into the courtyard. If that window wasn't there, he could jump from here to the courtyard... But how could he break it?

With a jolt, he remembered what happened yesterday. He swings around to see the mic stand he left by the door. Without a second thought, he swipes the stand and charges the window, intent on smashing it.

As he ran, he prayed. _'I know I'm not strong enough to break this glass, I know windows don't break like they do in the movies, but please! Arsene, High Pixie, Thor, Michael, Seth, any of those that reside within me please, give me your strength!'_

He mustered all the strength he could and directed the mic stand toward the pane of glass in front of him. In one swing he could feel the glass give way as he heard the ensuing shatter. With it, a few screams from those within the classrooms. Thanking whoever it was that gave him strength, he didn't hesitate to leap through the new entrance.

In one movement he could feel the ground disapear from under his feet. He looks down to see a full story of empty space beneath him. This wasn't the Metaverse, and this fall was something almost no one can pull of without injury.

 _'Even if I'm not in the Metaverse, this is something I know I can do. Just remember how it felt as you fell through the stained glass window of the casino, the weightless until the end, how you shifted your weight to roll as you reached the ground. Remember!'_

The wind fluttered through his clothes as he fell. Closing his legs and straightening his body, he prepares to enter a roll. His heels touch the ground, and in that instant he begins to curl up. Tucking himself into a ball, he takes the momentum of the fall and directs the energy to the side. The world spun as he rolled, landing without a scratch.

He had no time to celebrate, no time to catch his breath. Looking up, the sun was glaring into his eyes through his glasses, rendering his vision nearly useless. With what little he could see, he saw a vague shadow separate from the roof.

"NO!"

He brakes into a dash, running towards her as fast as he can. He crossed the courtyard in little more than a second, and yet it felt like hours. The distance seemed to go on for miles, each step feeling as slow as molasses. When he reached the end he could have sworn it would have been to late, and yet when he looked up she was still falling, seemingly suspended in air.

As soon as he sees her, however, time decided to bet against him. The moment he looked up time seemed to speed up, and her descent came all the faster. No time left, Akira throws his legs out in front of him and slides towards Shiho. He outstretches his arms in front of him, reaching out for her.

Time, the fickle mistress she is, slows down to a near stand-still. Akira looks on, hoping beyond all hope he had enough momentum to reach her.

20 feet...

15 feet...

10 feet...

She was barely off the ground. With only a few feet from the ground, a pair of legs swoop in under her, followed by the rest of the body.

She made contact, and two screams rang out instead of one.

Pain shot through both of their bodies as everything seemed to go still. Delirious from the pain, Shiho was unable to register anything else. Her leg felt broken, and the rest of her body felt busted. After what felt eternity, Shiho found enough strength to open her eyes, and see what happened.

She was horrified to see the same student from yesterday having acted as her cushion.

Akira's head was hung back, his whole body flattened against the ground as he remained unmoving. Shiho could feel her tears welling up, and she had neither the energy nor the will to wipe them away.

She tried to move, but her body refused. She tried to call out, but her voice disappeared. With what little energy she had left, she whispered; "N-No... Please... D-Don't die... Not for me... Please...!"

"You..."

His voice gives some of her breath back to her, as a slice of her hope returns. Akira manages to raise his head slightly, in spite of the pain. He looks at her with a strained expression, and yet he somehow, somewhere from the depths of his soul finds the ability to smile. "You... You're h-heavier... Than you look... I'm s-so glad... Y-You're... Okay..."

His strength exhausted, his head slumps back, everything receding to darkness.

~-J-~

Akira looks around, seeing nothing but darkness around him. Soon, however, a shining, blue butterfly appears before him to illuminate the darkness. "Lavenza...?"

 _ **Time is a river.**_

Akira recoils at the voice. _'That definitly wasn't Lavenza, that sounded like an adult, but was it a man or a woman...?'_

 ** _You may change the flow temporarily, but it will always proceed to it's natural destination._**

 ** _You are not God._**

 ** _You may be able to guide the world in a different direction, but you cannot determine what will happen according to you're own will._**

 ** _You cannot force the world to your will, but you may sacrifice for it._**

 ** _Remember this well._**

 ** _The world is counting on you._**

The voice was scolding, but not needlessly angry. It was as if it was his parent, trying to teach him an important lesson. He couldn't find it in himself to argue against the voice.

The darkness itself seemed to melt away, and he returned to unconsciousness.

~-J-~

Akira stirred from his sleep, slowly starting to realize he was awake. He opens his eyes and sees a lot of white. Confused, he looks around a bit more, his surroundings coming into focus. There was a curtain around him a few feet to his left. To his right was a window, light shining in from it. He realized he was laying in a bed with white sheets.

 _'I'm in a hospital.'_

Having connected the dots, he takes a few closer looks at his surroundings. Noticing a clicker at his side to adjust the bed, he realizes that a nurse assistance button had to be close by. He also noticed he was wearing his school uniform, meaning he couldn't have been out long.

Clicking the bed up a few degrees, Akira tries to reposition himself. As soon as he slides up a burning, sharp pain flares in his chest.

"Urgh!" _'Dammit... Must have broken a few ribs...'_ He laments, hoping this doesn't interfere with dealing with Kamoshida's Palace. Actually, he could feel his bandages underneath his clothes.

A moment after the pain subsides he remembers how he got here in the first place.

 _'Shiho! Is she alright!?'_

The sound of the curtains sliding to the side snaps him out of his thoughts. He looks to his side, and sees Ryuji standing there, relief on his face. "You're up! Dude, you had me scared shitless!"

Surprised at his friend's appearance, Akira isn't sure how to respond. "Ryuji...? What are you doing here?"

Ryuji looks at him like he's crazy. "Why? I was worried about you, duh! I heard you jumped out the window and caught Suzui when she jumped... You were both sent here and I visited you guys." He explains, his hands in his pockets.

"So Suzui is here? How is she!?" Akira asks quickly, concerned about her.

Ryuji puts his hands in front of him, trying to calm Akira down. "Jeez! Calm down! When I saw Suzui she was sleeping. Takamaki was visiting her, too. The doc said she broke her leg, but that was about the worst of it. He said if you weren't there, it would have been way worse..."

"... Really?" Akira breathes a sigh of relief. If nothing else, he prevented the worst of her injuries. That was enough.

"But dude, seriously!?"

The outburst startled Akira. His friend was getting angry with him?

"You scared the shit outta me! You know how long I've been sitting over there, waitin' for you to wake up? You were out for hours, man!" Ryuji nearly yells, his anger having been born of worry.

"Hours...?" Akira whispers, looking at the clock poster on the wall. It was 12:37.

 _'It's been over four hours? Damn...'_

"Yeah, hours! Just don't scare me like that anymore, dude..." Ryuji lets out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding.

Akira gives a smile, touched by his friend's concern. "Sorry, man. Thanks for the concern."

Ryuji stretches a little, probably having sat in that chair for a while. "You don't have to thank me, you're the one gettin' yourself hurt..."

Remembering something Ryuji said earlier, Akira decides to ask about it. "You said Ann Takamaki was here?"

"Hm? Yeah, she's with Suzui, like I said. We both got here about the same time, so we visited both of you guys while you were still out. After that we decided to split up so we could each wait for you guys to wake up." Ryuji explains, hoping that cleared things up. "Oh, and another dude saying he was your guardian came by earlier."

Akira's eyes widen slightly. "Sojiro was here earlier?"

"I think that's what his name was. He said he had to do a few things and was going to come back later today."

 _'He probably had to pick up some food for Futaba...'_ Akira sits up in his bed, determined to see Shiho and Ann. "Hey, you think you can help me up? I wanna go meet up with them."

Ryuji quickly walks over to Akira, trying to talk him out of it. "Whoa, hold on! Didn't you JUST get hurt? You should just rest for a bit, man." He reasons, hoping that was enough to convince him otherwise.

"But I really just want to make sure she's alright..."

"I know, I know. How about this? We get a nurse in here, and if they say you're good to go, we'll go see them, okay?" Ryuji offers as a happy medium.

After a moment, Akira concedes. "Alright, sounds good. Thanks again."

Ryuji smirks. "Someone's gotta keep you from doing something stupid, right?"

Instantly recognizing the irony in Ryuji saying that, Akira tries his best not to laugh.

"AHEM."

The voice cut him off from his thoughts. He looks around, but doesn't see anyone. "Ryuji, did you hear that?"

"Eh? Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you. Furball's here."

As if on cue, Morgana jumped onto Akira's bed, looking indignant. "Morgana!? What are you doing here?" Akira questions. How did Ryuji manage to get Morgana into a hospital, with him being a cat and all?

"I can't have one of my contacts be out of commission. I came here to check on you, see if you were still up for the job. I would have said something earlier if SOMEONE would have told you about me sooner." Morgana says, glaring at Ryuji.

"Why do you need me to announce you!? Get over yourself!" Ryuji exclaims, causing the two to start bickering with each other.

Deciding to let the two fight, Akira looks around for the call button. He eventually finds it behind the back of the bed. He presses it and turns his focus back at the two. "Hey, I called a nurse. Ryuji, you brought Morgana in through a book bag, I'm guessing?"

Knocked out of the argument, Ryuji nods. "Yeah, you need him to hide?"

"Yeah, It'd be nice if the nurses don't kick Morgana out. You okay with this for now, Morgana?" Akira asks, much to Morgana displeasure.

"I'd prefer not to have to be stuffed in there... But there really isn't much other choice. Alright, give me a second."

Morgana hides, and the two teenagers wait for the nurse to arrive. Eventually, a man wearing a mint-colored uniform walks in with a clipboard. "Oh, you're awake I see!"

Akira gives a reassuring nod. "Yeah, chest is hurting a bit, but otherwise I'm not feeling to shabby."

The nurse returns the nod. "That's good to hear. When the doctors tested you they found you to be in shockingly good condition. If you're well enough you may be able to be released as early as tomorrow morning, you might not even miss school!"

Akira speaks up. "That's great, but I was actually hoping to visit another patient here."

The nurse raises an eyebrow. "Visit? I'm not sure if you're in any condition to be walking around."

"What if I go around in a wheelchair? That wouldn't hurt my condition at all, yeah?" Akira offers, hoping to strike some sort of dealing with him.

The nurse considers this for a second. "Well... Alright, I think that will work. We just need you back here by 8:00 P.M. That's the curfew."

Akira smiles. "Thank you so much."

The nurse and Ryuji set up a wheelchair for Akira, who eventually got seated in the thing. It took some convincing, but the nurse eventually let Ryuji push around Akira, and thus let them go around unsupervised.

"You remember Suzui's room number?" Akira asks, holding the book bag Morgana was in.

"13A! I think..."

"Great..." Akira groaned. He could have sworn he heard Morgana say the same thing from in the bag.

~-J-~

"Here we are, 7D!" Ryuji announces, having had to ask for directions. Akira nervously leans forward and knocks on the door.

 _'What if the injuries are worse than I'm thinking? I- Never mind! I can't be thinking like that right now.'_

After a few seconds, the door opens to reveal Ann answering it. "Sakamoto? Kurusu? What are you doing out here? Aren't you supposed to be in a ward?" She directed the latter question at Akira.

"I'm feeling alright. I was just hoping to visit Suzui." Akira explains, hoping she was awake.

"You can come in." It was a quiet voice within the room, it was Shiho's voice!

Ann glances to the inside of the room before looking back at the two. She nods, and goes back inside the room to give them space to enter. As Akira's wheeled in Ann opens the curtains to reveal a certain volleyball member lying in bed, currently awake.

Akira smiles wide when he sees her. She was hurt, a bit more than him, but not too hurt to return the smile. Akira could feel his heart skip a beat. "Suzui! You feeling alright?" He asks quickly, realizing she probably got asked that before and will be asked that later on.

She nods. "Yeah, it's not too bad. What about you? Did... you get hurt...?"

Akira picks up on what she really meant, whether anything was broken. "It's nothing major, I'm just being wheeled around so Ryuji will get off my back." He jokes, to Ryuji's immediate response.

"Come on! I was just worried about you, is all!" He nearly yells, feeling like Akira threw him under a bus.

"Hey, quite down, will you? This is a hospital!" Ann says, glaring at Ryuji. Ryuji doesn't talk back, instead he takes a second to look around the room, before chuckling.

"What's so funny?" Ann asks, more curious than annoyed.

Ryuji closes his eyes, and leans against the wall. "Just weird, is all... How long has it been since we've all even been in the same room?" He asks, which surprises everyone in the room except Akira.

Shiho is the first to respond. "... Wow, I never really thought about it. We haven't really talked since middle school, haven't we, Sakamoto?"

Ryuji gives a cheeky grin. "Nope! I was actually hoping to talk with you guys again after we tak care of Kamoshida."

Shiho's face darkens at the sound of his name. "Kamoshida..."

Ryuji immediately recognizes his mistake. "Oops! Sorry!"

Ann wasn't so inclined to let it go that easily. "You idiot!"

"Sorry, sorry!"

Thinking of something, Akira opens up his book bag, much to Morgana's surprise. "Hey, Suzui. I got something that might cheer you up." He pulls Morgana out, who started to squirm. "Wait! What are you doing!?"

Everyone else is shocked when they see Morgana. "Wait, you brought a cat in here?" Ann asks. Ryuji quickly looks between Akira and Morgana, trying to figure out what Akira was thinking.

"Huh? Who is this little guy?" Shiho asks, holding out her hands to take Morgana.

"He's a stray cat we found a few days ago. Cute, isn't he?" Akira says, watching as Shiho pet the cat.

Shiho giggles. "He's a real cutie!" Morgana goes from resisting to curiously accepting in that one comment. "Cutie...?"

Ryuji scoffs. "Cutie? More like a pain in the ass..."

"That's not nice! I think he's adorable." Ann says, petting Morgana as well.

"Adorable? You're too kind, Lady Ann." Morgana says, causing Akira to roll his eyes.

 _'Oh boy, it's begun.'_

"Hey, Kurusu..."

Akira looks over to Shiho, who looked... Ashamed?

"I... Just wanted to say thank you. You've saved me twice now, and now... You're hurt because of me... I'm so sorry..."

Akira doesn't know what to say at first, but after a moment he figures it out. He decided to do something stupid. He puts the book bag on the floor, and rises to his feet.

"Whoa, dude!"

"Should you be standing!?"

Despite the protests and the flare of pain in his chest, he stands up. Shiho looks at him in surprise and shock, wondering how he was able to stand. After the pain subsides a bit, Akira smiles wider, to show it's alright. "It's alright, Suzui. I'm not that banged up, right? Really, don't worry about it."

He sits back down, and silence engulfs the room for a few seconds. Eventually Shiho nods, tears in her eyes. "You're... You're so kind... Thank you."

Some time passes in comfortable silence. After about five minutes or so, Ann addresses Akira. "Hey, Kurusu... Shiho told me what happened yesterday. Thanks, from both of us. You've done so much, and we don't know how to thank you."

Akira rubs his neck bashfully. "Again, don't worry about it..

Ryuji, being left out of the loop, is left confused. "Yesterday...? Did something happen?"

Ann looks from Ryuji to Shiho. "Should I tell him?" Shiho nods, looking sympathetic. "Go ahead, but... could you say it... outside the room."

Ann immediately understands. "Of course. Come one, Sakamoto." The two exit the room, leaving only Akira and Shiho (and Morgana, if you count cats).

Akira tugs at his bandages a bit, bothered by his injuries. _'Shiho's are probably worse, aren't they?'_ Thinking on this, he realizes something important. _'Injuries sustained in the Metaverse carry over to reality, and vice versa. On the other hand, injuries that healed in the real world that are carried over from the Metaverse are healed when you go back. I wonder...'_

An idea coming to mind, he decides to share his plan. "Hey, Shiho?" He immediately catches himself. "Oop- Sorry! That just sorta slipped..."

Shiho turns her gaze from Morgana and smiles. "It's okay, you can just call me Shiho."

Akira's slightly surprised. "Really? You can just call me Akira, then." Happy with this development, he continues what he was going to say. "So... Me and Ryuji have a plan."

Morgana jolts up as he says this, while Shiho just looks confused. "A plan...?"

Akira nods. "Yeah, we-"

"THAT SON OF A BITCH!"

The yell startles the two of them, though they both know who it is. "Well, I guess Ryuji heard about it." Akira comments.

Ann and Ryuji walk in, Ryuji being understandably pissed. "Damn it! That bastard's gotta pay!" He yells, a fiery look in his eyes.

"How do you plan on doing that? There's no way we can talk sense into him... He's probably planning to expel you guys right now, anyways." Ann explains, causing Ryuji to grimace.

"Akira, you said you two had a plan?" Shiho says, trying to resume the conversation. This elicits a reaction from Ryuji. "Dude, you told her!?"

Akira just gives a solemn look. "Not yet, but they have the right to know. I think we should show them." He answers simply.

Ryuji doesn't let it rest there. "Dude, it's too dangerous! They don't need to get involved." Morgana joins the argument. "I have to agree with him... Which is something I never thought I'd say. The Metaverse would be too dangerous for two people without Personas."

Akira closes his eyes, considering the possibilities. "... I know, but I have a plan, and we can heal her there, right? It will work out, trust me." He turns towards Ann and Shiho, interlacing his fingers.

Ryuji and Morgana still looked disapproving, but remained silent.

Ann and Shiho just looked confused. "H-Heal...? What are you guys talking about...?" Shiho asks, moving her leg slightly.

Akira retains a straight face, trying to look serious as he said this. "I know a way to get Kamoshida to repent for everything he's done, and he'll confess to everything of his own volition." He pulls out his phone, showing them a specific app.

"But we need to go somewhere first."

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: Part two is up! This is the part of the story where everything starts getting crazy, and Akira has to decide what to change and what to remain the same. (Good lord how long was this one chapter...?)**

 **Review time!**

 **CureCaligraphy:**

"Another year of everyone treating me like a spawn of Satan! ...which I actually am, now that I think about it." Kiccan are you a masochist?

 **Part of my interpretation of Akira is him being a slight sociopath. I also put a few of my own characteristics into the character, like telling myself inside jokes. (Please don't go judging.)**

 **With that, I'll see you all next chapter! Let's hope the next chapter doesn't take so long...**


	6. Chapter 5: The Panther in Red

**Chapter 5: The Panther in Red**

Ann and Shiho look curiously at the young man, unsure of what location had to do with anything, let alone the phone he was holding up for emphasis.

"Go somewhere...? But, neither of you are really in any condition to be moving around. Shouldn't you wait, then?" Ann voices her concerns, unsure what they were planning.

"Actually..." Akira starts. "Where we're going, we can heal these injuries instantly. Don't have to wait up on recovering." Akira says cryptically, making sure not to explain too much just in case they don't come with them.

Ryuji and Morgana seem to realize what he's getting at, something Akira could tell from the look of realization they both had. "Hey, dude." Ryuji whispers, getting Akira's attention.

"If that's what you were plannin', then you should have told us! I would have been on board way sooner." He explains. Akira mentally facepalms for not realizing this.

 _'Crap, that's right! I would have been able to avoid the argument if I knew to tell them that!'_

Yep, should have mentioned that! Sorry." Akira says, after which he quickly gets back on track. He addresses Shiho. "Anyways, neither of us will have to deal with these injuries for very long. We can get out of this place by the end of the day, you don't even have to leave the bed."

His attempts to convince them were meet with...

... Total skepticism and disbelief. Figures.

"We could leave...?" Shiho whispers, not sure what to make of all this.

Akira sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Look, I know I sound crazy, and if I was in your situation, I would refuse, too. But, _please_ , you have to trust me here."

He finished his plea to the two and falls silent. All he could do was wait for a response. They didn't say anything for a moment, too weird-ed out to come to a conclusion.

After a minute or so, Ann speaks up. "I... What? No."

Akira's heart sank.

"What are you guys talking about? I mean, who could believe something like that?! Why would Ka- Why would _he_ confess to it now? After all he's done? And what in the world are you talking about when you say you'll heal her? This is crazy! We're not-"

"Ann, wait."

Confusion set as Ann turned to the owner of the voice. It took her a second to realize that it was Shiho who said it, instead of Ryuji or Akira. Shiho returned Ann's gaze with a steely look of determination, one that surprised everyone in the room.

"I... I trust Akira. I honestly haven't known him for very long..." She turns towards the boy in question. "But you've done so much for me already... And your asking to help me again. What you're saying sounds a little crazy, and you jumping out the school window kinda reinforces that, but... You're too kind to lie about this, aren't you? I believe you."

Akira's face quickly breaks into a smile. "Thank you, Shiho! You won't regret this!"

Ann wasn't so happy about this. "What?! Why did you call her- Why are you okay with this?! You can't be serious!"

Shiho looks back at Ann, a complete look of calm on her face. "Ann, please. If what he's saying is true... Then we can finally put all of this behind us. We'll never have to worry about... Kamoshida again!"

Ryuji steps forward. "Don't worry! We'll make sure everything is totally safe, zero risk! And we're going to take that bastard down if it's the last thing we do!"

Ann shakes her head at his 'reassurance.' "That just makes me think we're going to be in danger... Fine! But I'm going, too! I'm not letting Shiho go alone."

Akira snaps his fingers. Everything seemed to be falling into place! "Alright! If everything's settled, let's hit the road!" He said, almost a little too enthusiastically. He opened the MetaNav on his phone, and awaited the familiar voice.

 _"_ _Kamoshida's Palace confirmed. Enter Metaverse at a congruent location, or an established safe zone?"_

"Established safe zone. Outside of the front entrance." Akira confirms, going through the motions. Ann and Shiho look confused, what would an app do?

"Alright, guys." Akira warns. "Promise you won't freak out?"

"What?"

 _"_ _Location established. Transporting to the Metaverse now."_

Waves of purple and red washed across the vision of the five in the room. Reality distorted around them as they transcended worlds.

~-J-~

Vision returned, and the five found themselves in front of a dark and cruel castle, one that held the ambitions and misdeeds of Kamoshida.

Two cries of pain ring out, as Shiho was left laying on the ground and Akira on his knees. "Shiho!" Ann quickly runs over to her, offering her whatever support she could. Ryuji does the same for Akira.

 _'Crap... Should have realized that we'd lose our cushioning...'_ Akira realizes, clutching his chest in pain.

Ann stares at the two, terrified. "What the-?! What are you guys wearing? Where the hell are we?!" She starts to panic.

A glance towards himself proved that he had switched to his Phantom Thief attire, which means that Ryuji and Morgana did, too. He had so much to explain...

 _'Ugh, it'll be easier if I just got it over with...'_

From his kneeling position he rips his mask off, revealing his bloodied face. "CYBELE!"

Blue flames erupted from the ground as the figure of a nude woman appeared. Her skin was blue, and white lines ran along her body. Two black horns protruded from her head of equally black hair. Her hands were replaced with what looked like tiny claws, completing her alien appearance.

Ann and Shiho watched in horror and awe at the demon that seemed to rise from hell.

"Mediarhan!"

The mistress waved her hand, and a soothing light surrounded everyone there. Akira instantly felt rejuvenated, although it also came with the unpleasant feeling of his ribs popping back together.

He slowly rises to his feet, the pain having evaporated. He looked towards Ann, who was left speechless, and Shiho, who seemed too confused to notice. "Ladies..." He says dramatically, gesturing around him. "Welcome to the Metaverse."

"Metaverse...?!" Ann starts. "What does that-"

A hand on her shoulder cuts off her question. She looks behind her, and nearly cries when she sees what it is.

Shiho was standing. No trace of her previous injuries remained.

"Ann... it doesn't hurt anymore."

~-J-~

They were in the armory of Kamoshida's palace. Shadows lay on the ground, slowly fading from existence after the three Phantom Thieves had done finished their work. Akira tugged at the wrist of his gloves, looking around to make sure the area was clear.

"No more Shadows in sight... Alright, all clear!"

Ann and Shiho appeared from the hallway, having hidden during the fighting. They all continue on their way through the Palace, making an occasional stop to combat the Shadow guards littered throughout the place.

"Um, Akira?" Shiho asks, getting his attention.

"Joker." He says quickly, shooting out a friendly reminder.

"Right, Joker..." She corrects, not sure what to ask first. "Those... spirits you can summon, those are Personas?"

"Yep, though we can only summon them here, in the Metaverse."

"So... We're inside his head right now? It's... really gaudy." Ann asks, to which Morgana replies.

"A Palace reflects the state of someone's mind. To Kamoshida, the school is his castle. He's the king, so this is the place where he holds absolute authority." He explains. They began making their way towards the lobby, ready to call it a day.

Ann and Shiho both stare at him oddly for a while. "I still can't believe you can talk." Ann points out.

"Ugh, wish he couldn't..." Ryuji groans, to Morgana glares at him.

"Funny that you say that, since at least I can say something useful!"

Shiho goes between them. "Please no fighting! You're all a team, right?"

They began to near a corner.

"You kidding? To him, it's a one-cat show!"

"DON'T call me a cat!" Morgana yells.

Akira cringes, and turns on the two in frustration. "Quiet! There-"

"Who's there?!"

Akira quickly turns around to see an armored shadow standing in the corner. Without missing a beat, Akira runs forward, knife in hand. He thrusts straight into the throat of the apparition, making sure to end the fight quick. As he felt his blade sink into the almost gaseous matter, he stepped behind the armor, dragging his knife through it's neck the entire time. He spins, and rips the knife free from the monster before returning it to it's sheathe. He could hear it's head fall to the floor, followed a moment later by the rest of the body. The sounds of it dissolving filled Akira with satisfaction.

He smirks. _'Cat-like reflexes...'_

"YOU AGAIN!"

He grimaces. _'Shit...'_

As the rest manage to catch up, Akira looks up to see an entire squad of knights. With them was the perverted, black-hearted king himself...

Akira could feel his stomach turn at the sight of him. "Kamoshida..."

Ryuji and Morgana ready their weapons, anticipating a fight. Akira glanced back to check on Ann and Shiho, and he could feel a a chill go down his spine.

Shiho stood there, petrified. After a moment of shock, Ann realized this and tries to snap her out of it.

 _'Dammit!'_ Akira thinks, trying to think of an escape. _'We're stuck with three thieves against a squad of six knights, each probably having multiple Shadows... I don't think we can cover all of their weaknesses, even with my Personas. Grrr, why didn't I register Satanael into the Compendium when I had the chance?!'_

"You people just can't seem to mind your own damn business! What could you possibly-" He pauses once he sees Shiho behind the small crowd. "You-! How the hell are YOU here?! Get out of my sight! Here I was hoping I wouldn't have to deal with you anymore..."

Shiho gasps and takes a step back, clearly shaken. This... This wasn't good. Akira was going to say something clever, or encouraging, or at least something to help calm Shiho down...

But someone else beat him to it.

"YOU BASTARD!"

Everyone looks to Ann, who seemed to have fire in her eyes. "How dare you talk to her like that?! You... You've tortured us! Every single day we've had to deal with your bullshit! You hit us, you harassed us! W-What you tried to do to Shiho...!"

"Silence!" Kamoshida yells, swiping his arm through the air. "I don't need to justify my actions to an impostor, or anyone for that matter! I'm the _king,_ so all of _you_ just have to stay quiet and listen!"

Ann stomps the floor so hard the tile cracks. Everyone could feel her fury from there, it was like a whirling inferno. "SHUT UP! I've HAD IT with you! You're going to pay for everything!" Akira could already tell what was about to happen, at this point all he could do was stand there and watch.

"I'll make sure you BURN!"

The second following that felt like an eternity. The atmosphere turned as a new presence entered the halls. That same spirit...

It was not a patient one.

 _ **"**_ _ **My... It has taken far too long."**_

As the new voice rang out, Ann grabbed her head. Overcome by a splitting headache, she felt the strength in her legs vanish and fell to her knees, and she began writhing in pain. That feeling... The feeling that your body was being ripped in half starting with your head was one he knew all too well. It took all the strength in the world to not be overcome by that pain, to not let whatever force that was tear into your skull.

It was a terrible burden to have to bear... but it was one that made you so much stronger.

 _ **"**_ _ **Tell me... Who is going to avenge her if you don't? Forgiving him was never the option... Such is the scream of the other you that dwells within..."**_

 _ **"**_ _ **I am thou, thou art I..."**_

 _ **"**_ _ **We can finally forge a contract..."**_

Ann goes still, and she releases her grip on her head. Her face is one of hate, yet certainty. "I hear you... Carmen."

She rises from the ground, blue flame engulfing her face, eventually giving way to reveal a red cat mask. "You're right. No more holding back...!"

 _ **"**_ _ **There you go... Nothing can be solved by restraining yourself."**_

Ann grasps at the mask, using all of her strength to rid herself of that sickening mask.

 _ **"**_ _ **Understand? Then I'll gladly lend you my strength."**_

The mask she wore to society tore away, and a blue pillar of flame erupted in the hall. From the light appeared a the personification of lust and whimsy, a beautiful women with suitors happy to be chained like dogs if it was by her hand. The spirit of true freedom...

"Carmen..." Akira whispers in admiration. "And so the fourth thief appears..."

Kamoshida seemed scared shitless of the idea of _four_ thieves wandering his halls. All of the guards he had sent our way hadn't stopped us yet, so how could he stop us now?

From a wreath of hellfire, she pulls out a crimson whip and points it at the tyrannical king. Her voice was a dangerous whisper. "You know what? I'm not some cheap girl you can toy with... you scumbag."

A guard steps in front of Kamoshida to shield him. The best he could come up with in response was a weak mutter. "Bitch...!"

"You tried to steal everything from Shiho... You tried to destroy her... Now it's your turn!" She steps towards the squad of Shadows, Ryuji, Morgana, and Akira backing her up.

"I will rob you of everything...!"

Shiho covers her mouth, in awe of her best friend. "Ann...!"

The captain of the guard, who was distinguishable by his golden armor, seemed to have more of a spine than the king himself. "How dare you! Enough of your insolence!" The squad of Shadows fade into the floor, all of them coalescing into a single mass of swirling darkness.

From it rose the powerful demon, Belphegor... Demon of Sloth.

Ann was not intimidated. "No, I've had enough of you. No one's gonna stop me now!"

"Let's go, Carmen!"

 _'Let the battle begin!'_ Akira thinks to himself. They had a full team again... it was time to have some fun!

"Arsene!"

"Captain!"

"Zorro!"

~-J-~

The shadows faded, the battle over. The monster of sloth had been burned away to nothing. They all took a moment to catch their breath, but out of the four of them Ann seemed especially tired. She leaned against the wall for support and would have fell to the ground if Shiho hadn't caught her.

"Ann, are you okay?!" She asks, holding her hand.

Ann slowly nods. "Yeah... Just tired... and sore..." She slowly becomes more aware of her surroundings, which is evident by the confused look on her face. She looks down at herself, which seemed to answer her question.

"Aah!" It was only now she noticed the thief garb she was given in her Persona's Awakening. She also notices the rather... generous view of her chest her outfit left her, and quickly moves to cover it.

"What the hell?! Why am I wearing this? How'd it get here?!"

Akira sighs and thinks on their next move. _'Summoning a Persona is extremely draining after the initial fight, maybe you only notice it after the adrenaline's worn off...'_ He takes a quick look around. _'Seems the dick ran during the fight. Damn... We could have locked him up somewhere until we managed to steal the Treasure, that way we wouldn't have had to worry about him interfering anymore... Well, whatever.'_

He takes another glance at Ann and realizes their next move. "Alright, guys. We made some progress today, but I think it'd be best if we call it a day. We should reconvene back in the real world and discuss our next move."

Ann said something Akira didn't expect. "No..."

He's quickly taken aback by this, she wanted to stay?

"We're making progress... right? We can't stop yet..." She tries standing up, but relies on Shiho for support.

Shiho, however, quickly stands her ground. "Ann, no! You can't keep going, you can barely stand! Please, let's just go back for now..."

"But he-"

"Will get what's coming to him." Shiho interrupts, trying to make her friend see sense. "We can go on fighting some other day, we have time... So please... Please don't hurt yourself... I couldn't stand the thought of you getting hurt..." Tears welled in her eyes as she said this. A torrent of locked up emotions was unleashed as she cried on her best friend's shoulder.

"Shiho..."

It was decided, then. Time to go home...

Akira let's out a heavy sigh, his own exhaustion catching up to him. _'It's been a long day...'_ He laments, rubbing the back of his neck. "Alright, let's establish a route back to the entrance."

"We passed a safe room a few doors back." Morgana points out.

"Good call! All right guys, let's pack up and get out of here..."

As they left, Akira could only pray that the injuries he and Shiho had would stay healed. It was time to test that theory. They felt themselves fall through reality, flashes of what seemed to be red and black shards of glass fell with them.

~-J-~

They found themselves in the hospital room again, in the exact same positions as before. They each experienced a moment of shock before they could process the world around them. As soon as he could think, Akira started patting his chest, waiting for any pain. He winced... before realizing that nothing hurt.

He stood up, and even then nothing hurt. Everything had healed! He quickly looks over to Shiho, who was experiencing that same moment of realization as he was. She looks him in the eye, an uncertain look on her face.

She slowly takes pulls away her bed sheets, still not sure if or when the pain will return. She slides to the edge of the bed, her feet dangling over the side. Inches away from touching the floor, she leans forward ever so slightly, causing her body to slide towards the cold floor. With an almost inaudible pat her feet meet the ground. Leaning forward, she felt all of her weight return to her legs, the only thing keeping her up.

No wince, no pain, no troubles. She stood without any support or device, free as a bird. She looks down at her feet in disbelief, before looking at Akira.

She smiled wider than he had ever seen her before.

"Shiho...!"

Ann quickly ran up and embraced Shiho, both of them crying in happiness. "You're alright...! Thank God!"

Akira could feel himself nearly explode with joy. It worked! It freakin' worked! He didn't quite know what made him do it, but he couldn't help but start doing a small dance of joy. "We did~ It worked out~ Alright~"

Ryuji jumps out of chair and kicks the air. "Hell yeah!" He didn't say anything else, probably didn't need to say anything else, honestly.

Morgana didn't seem too excited, but only maintained that image to seem more dignified. Inside, he was jumping with joy! "A fruitful expedition, if I do say so myself! Nice thinking, Joker."

The once quiet room had exploded into celebratory cheers. Everything had gone... perfectly. They were all patched up, Kamoshida was going to go down, and Ann had become a Thief.

Perfect!

The door to the ward opens.

… Perfect.

The doctor walked in, clipboard in hand. "Hello, Ms. Suzui, how are you feel-" Everything stopped in place as he looked at the scene in front of him. Akira was stuck mid-pose, Shiho and Ann were hugging, Ryuji was frozen while he was punching the air, and Morgana, who was a cat, was caught sitting on the bed.

Akira looks at the doctor. "... Ummmmm... I think we're feeling better, doc..."

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: HAPPY NEW YEARS!**

 **Here's a New Years gift, from me to you! I took a break to focus on my RWBY fic and write a one-shot, but now I'm back on the Persona train. I think I'll post another chapter of this before considering what to do next. Maybe I'll switch back to RWBY, maybe stick with this, I don't know. One thing's for sure, this chapter was well overdo!**

 **Now that I'm back, let's read some reviews, shall we?**

 **Tertius711:**

hmm Shiho joining the Phantom Thieves?

 **Unfortunately not, though she will have a larger roll in the story than before!  
**

 **Fabulous Moonie:**

very good

 **Thanks!**

 **Guest:**

Silly people, Red/Akira is not the spawn of Satan. He IS Satan. Or Satanael. Or an interpretation of God. (Yes, in one interpretation of Gnoticism, both Yaldaboath and Satanael are actually gods, with Satanael creating the world to protect us from Yaldaboath. Interpretations.)

 **That's really cool! Man... Atlaus puts so much research and effort into the symbolism of these games, it's insane...  
**

 **Thank all of you guys so much for reading, and see you next chapter!**


	7. Chapter 6: An Awkward Doctor Appointment

**Chapter 6: An Awkward Doctor Appointment**

To say this was an awkward situation would be an... understatement to say the least. After the doctor had walked in on the group, apparently all healed up, Akira and Shiho were taken out to be given x-rays. As the machine-operated scanner whirred around Akira's head, he tried to think of some way to get out of the situation, some bullshit excuse for why the two kids with broken bones were suddenly skipping through the hospital.

Akira grimaces. _'Come on, think of something... There has to be some crazy, out of this world explanation for why we got healed... Other than the Metaverse, that is. This has to have happened some time in history, right? Two random people walking off some broken bones? Yeah, didn't think so...'_

The machine was lifted over his head, revealing Akira's troubled expression. There wasn't any way out of this, was there?

"... Shit."

~-J-~

Two doctors stood in an office, looking over the x-rays of two patients, Akira Kurusu and Shiho Suzui. Earlier that day, the two had sustained serious injury from one dropping down several stories at Shujin Academy, while the other had attempted to catch the other. They had been admitted about five hours ago, and yet, in a mere five hours time...

"This... This doesn't make any sense!" One of the doctors said, left completely without an explanation. His colleague wasn't in any better position, either.

"They were expected to be hospitalized for days, not a few hours! This shouldn't be possible! We have their previous x-rays right here, too." They laid them out in a row, the contrast between photos extremely evident. "These aren't fake, either!"

He wipes his face in frustration, thinking about what they should do next. "Regardless of how they recovered, if they are healthy then we have to let them leave if their guardians come to retrieve them. And we have to notify the guardians that they are healthy enough to leave..."

The other doctor begins to panic. "W-We can't let them leave yet! If word gets around that two students made a miraculous recovery inside our hospital _without_ our care, our reputation could be damaged!"

"And it's not like we can just take credit for it, either. People would be asking for that kind of treatment! What do we do?"

They think for a moment, considering their options.

"I only have one idea..."

~-J-~

Akira, Ann,and Shiho were back in the Shiho's ward, mulling over what this meant going forward. Only Ryuji and Morgana weren't there, as Morgana had to be taken out of the hospital and Ryuji was the one to accompany him out and make sure he didn't get taken by some stranger. They managed to call Ryuji and keep him on speaker-phone, though.

"If word gets out that we somehow magically got better, we're screwed." Akira laments. Not only would everyone would be talking about them due to the incident (granted people would still be doing that after what happened earlier), but once the calling card's sent, everyone would suspect them to be the 'anonymous' Phantom Thieves. They needed to divert that attention somehow.

There was another reason, though. If word got out that a miracle had occurred involving them...

 _'Akechi...'_

Yeah. It might tip off Akechi and Shido way sooner than intended, and change the whole course of their Phantom Thief career.

 _'Can't let that happen.'_

Shiho speaks up. "And it's not like I can pretend to be hurt, since they already took the x-rays..."

A Change of Heart probably wasn't going to do anything, assuming they even could. It probably wasn't the best idea trying to bribe a successful doctor. They couldn't sneak around and destroy the x-rays. They've been considering their options for the past half-hour, but nothing came to mind. Until Ann says...

"Well, why don't we just ask them not to tell anybody?"

The silence in the room changes shape, and what sounds like a too-good-to-be-true started to make sense after a moment.

"I mean, they'd have to not give enough of a shit to forget about it in the first place, wouldn't they? Like, not caring 'nough to talk about it?" Ryuji asks.

"Well." Akira answers, his thoughts racing as he tries to predict each outcome. "Not necessarily. They would just need to not benefit from telling people in the first place. And seeing as how the focus of the story would be on us instead of the hospital, they wouldn't really have anything to gain."

Akira knew the ugly side of medicine and its practitioners well. His partnership with Tae revealed to him just how corrupt doctors could be. And knowing this, they may actually want to avoid the shock and news coverage such an event would cause.

"This is probably our best option. Let's go with it."

Over the phone, Morgana's voice could be heard. "Alright, but what about our story? How did you guys suddenly get better? If we don't have an explanation to give, then the plan could fall flat on it's face."

Akira snaps his fingers, having already come up with a solution to that when they were considering what to do about the doctors. "If nobody else can explain it, then how could we?"

When everyone looks to him, he gains confidence. "Let's just play dumb. Story will be that me and Shiho were in pain when we entered the ward, but after we talked for an hour or two we suddenly notice the pain had faded. We check, and find that all of our wounds had magically faded away, and we're so happy that we all JUMPED out of seats in celebration!"

Akira jumps out of his chair as he says this, throwing his hands in the air for emphasis. After he does so, he lets them fall to his side and looks to the rest of the team.

"How about that?"

They all look to each other, waiting to see if anybody could think of any pitfalls to the plan. "I mean, it's not like they'll have any better idea of what really happened." Ann points out.

Morgana speaks up. "I guess that's what we're going with. We'll ask the doctors to keep this situation private, and feign ignorance throughout! If everyone keeps to the story, we should be fine. Make sure not to say anything other than what they ask."

"Hmmmm..." Akira hums, thinking abut how they should go on about this. "Alright... Let's see whether or not they'll let us go early. Shiho, could you try calling down a nurse?" If he could get back to school by tomorrow, that would make picking up where they left off that much easier. She nods and presses the "call nurse" button beside the bed.

With everything pretty much settled, everyone gets ready to leave in the next hour or so. "Alright, well, me and Mona will be waitin' out here. I'm gonna hang up, my phone's runnin' low."

"Alright, see you guys in a bit." Akira says, before flipping his phone shut.

A few minutes of comfortable silence go by, leaving the three to process everything that had transpire that day. Afterwards Ann stands up and stretches, before addressing the other two.

"I'm going to get a drink from the vending machine, you guys want anything?"

"Uhhh, could you get me a water bottle, please?" Shiho asks.

"If you're offering, I'll take a water, too." Akira adds.

Ann nods, and grabs her bag. "Sure thing. Be back in a few." She walks out, leaving only two in the room.

Akira takes a quick glance towards Shiho, who was looking at her hands. Quickly looking away, Akira realizes he just did the same thing. He sighs.

 _'I... feel like I need to say something. Today has... really not been pleasant, especially for Shiho...'_

He looks back towards her, and musters what words he can. "How are you feeling?" It wasn't much, but it was the best he could come up with.

This snaps Shiho out of her thoughts, and she finds herself hard-pressed for an answer. "... I... don't know. I'm just..." She sighs, completely lost in the whirlwind of today's events. "... So tired."

Akira nods. "Well, we could talk later, if you want to rest."

Shiho shakes her head. "That's not what I mean. Well... I guess that, too. I just feel like... I'm caught in some sort of whirlpool, and everything around me is trying to drag me down to the bottom of the ocean..."

Akira knew the feeling, the feeling that everyone is against you. It broke his heart to hear it, but he continued to listen.

"I got so tired of fighting, of swimming... Yesterday was what did it for me. After that I... I thought the best thing I could do... The _only_ thing I could do was..."

She didn't finish, though she didn't need to.

After a moment of contemplation, Joker remembers what she told him before. Not 'before', as in the few interactions they had this past week, but what she told him in the other timeline, after her physical therapy.

"Shiho... I'm not sure if I have any right to say this... but I think I can say with certainty that even then, you didn't want to die."

Shiho looks at him curiously after he says this, waiting for him to continue.

"You just... wanted to get away from all of the crap you've been forced to face alone. You didn't choose to walk up there, there was just some other person in your head telling you to do it. It said you wouldn't feel any more pain... and conveniently forgot to mention the fact that you wouldn't be feeling _anything_ anymore."

He gazes at her for a moment, before smiling. The stress and worries of the day finally melted away as he said his next words.

"That voice isn't as strong as you, though. And you're not alone, we're going to fix this mess."

She didn't know what to say at first. It seemed as though a layer of shadow was lifted from her features, and for the first time today she began to relax. "Thank you. You all are doing so much to help me, I... don't know how I'll repay you."

Akira waves this off. "Taking that scumbag down is more than enough of a reward. I mean, literally, I'll probably be expelled if we don't."

"Well, even so, if you ever need any help or just need someone to talk to, just give me a call."

As she says this, the room seems to go dark. Time freezes in place and yet the room feels like a oven burning Akira away. Chains spontaneously appear from every inch of the room and surround the two.

 **I am thou, thou art I...**

 **Thou hast acquired a new vow.**

 **It shall become the wings of rebellion**

 **that breaketh thy chains of captivity.**

 **With the birth of the Aeon Persona,**

 **I have obtained the winds of blessing that**

 **shall lead to freedom and new power...**

Some of the chains attached to the walls snap, giving way to the image of a card depicting a pitch-black winged being against a crimson sky. The face and wings of the angelic creature were both upside-down.

 **NEW ABILITY**

 **Friendly Call**

 **Can call Shiho to increase the Max HP and SP of any one party member by 5% for the duration of the day.**

The darkness faded, and the chains disappeared from the room, leaving Akira slightly disoriented as he was dropped back into reality. Time resumes with the rest of the world being none the wiser.

"Oh, we never exchanged our numbers, didn't we?" Shiho asks, prompting a response from Akira.

"Haven't really gotten a good chance, have we?" He replies, taking out his phone. As the two register each other, Ann returns with two bottles of water and a soda in her bag. "Hey. Sorry I took so long, got kinda lost."

"It's fine."

"No worries."

As she handed them the drinks, Akira asks Ann a question. "Thanks, Ann. How much was it?"

Mid-sip, she waves it off before swallowing. "It's just a water bottle, don't worry about it."

Akira nods, smiling. "Thanks."

As the three sit around, Ann's expression suddenly turns serious. "So, when do you think we'll be meeting up next? What's the schedule?"

"Whenever we can." Akira answers quickly. "After school is pretty much the one time of the day we all have free. Lets try and make some progress everyday, if we can. That way, if anything comes up and we can't show up that day, we won't be as pressed for time."

"Sounds good." Ann quickly looks towards Shiho and nods, before addressing Akira again. "The faster we can get Kamoshida begging for forgiveness, the better."

Akira was about to say something. Something along the lines of, "He's getting what's coming to him soon enough." But before he could, the door to ward opened up, a doctor- not a nurse- walking in.

He wore a plastered-on smile, one that had been carefully manufactured over many years. It would have tricked most people, but for Akira, he had seen that smile in every single target they had ever went after. He wouldn't be fooled.

"Hello, Ms. Suzui, Mr. Kurusu." He didn't even seem to notice Ann in the room, which annoyed them all.

"How are you both feeling? Better, I hope?" The question was rhetorical. He obviously only asked to sound friendly, and was beating around the bush until he could get to the point.

"We're feeling much better, doctor." Shiho answers. The doctor nods, his expression falling ever so slightly, which was something that didn't escape notice. "Yes, well... I suppose that means you both wish to leave soon, doesn't it? Actually, we were hoping to discuss the matter of your recovery..."  
Everyone tenses as he says this. They prepare their story...

"Do either of you have any idea how you have made such a miraculous event? The speed of which is almost... unnatural. What happened after Mr. Kurusu visited Ms. Suzui? Surely something of note happened that would have been cause for such a dramatic recovery..."

Akira was the first to speak up, choosing his words carefully. "Well... I don't know. I went to visit Suzui-san... and while we were talking, I noticed that I wasn't in pain anymore. I stood up, and then Suzui-san managed to stand up... I don't know what happened that would have helped us..."

The doctor seemed to don a sort of poker face, contemplating this. "Is that so..."

Shiho quickly speaks up. "Uhm! We were wondering... uhh, Kurusu-san and I... if you could keep this a secret. Our recovery, I mean."

The doctor seems to perk up at this comment, almost as if he just heard a bit of surprisingly good news. "Are you... sure about this? You and Mr. Kurusu?"

"Yeah. A lot's been happening lately and... we just don't want anymore drama following us around right now. Can you and the staff here please keep this a secret?" Akira asks, trying to keep a neutral face.

The doctor stands up, ecstatic at the news, though he (poorly) tried to keep his excitement hidden. "Yes, Yes! We'll make sure to say that your injuries were less severe than originally anticipated, and that you were able to recover after a night of rest. We have also already informed your guardians that you are ready to be released from our hospital. You all have a good day, now!"

He quickly makes his way out of the room, leaving the three alone. Despite getting exactly the outcome they wanted, the apparent attitude of the staff left them uneasy.

"I mean, this going to sound cliché..." Ann says worriedly, looking at the door. "But that was a little too easy, don't you think?"

Akira nods. "They definitely have an ulterior motive, but as long as they keep to their word we should be fine..." He thinks about what possible reasons they would have to agree to it... But they all seemed way too far fetched. Regardless, he didn't doubt that it was driven by self-interest.

 _'Tsk... I should have asked his name, see if he had shown up on the MetaNav. So many people lie for they're own gain...'_

As the thought crosses his mind he instantly recognizes the hypocrisy of it. A good part of their job requires lying.

 _'But that's different.'_ He insists. _'We're risking our lives trying to help people by taking down the big-shots who try to bully everyone else.'_

 _'We're the exception.'_

"Hey, Akira?"

Ann's voice wakes him from his doldrums. He looks up to see Ann holding her phone out. "Since we'll be working together on this, we should stay in touch. What's your number?"

"Oh, it's..."

As they exchanged numbers, Ann takes a deep breath. "Thanks for helping us out. Now we have a way out of this mess... And it's all thanks to you."

Akira chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. "Don't forget about Morgana and Ryuji. Morgana's actually been doing this longer than I have..."

Ann roles her eyes. "I mean, yeah. But what I'm trying to say is, if you ever need any help with anything, let me know."

The room goes dark, and time seems to freeze. Chains materialize from the wall and a tarot card appears in his vision.

 _'Here we go again...'_

~-J-~

He managed to call Sojiro, and after a long and heated back-and-forth about what had happened he was going to pick him up here soon. As he sat in the front lobby, an idea crossed his mind. He pulled out his phone and started typing.

 **Akira: Hey, Ryuji, you still outside?**

 **Ryuji: Nah, man. Had to go home, sorry. Morgana's in my room right now, but we're not allowed pets, so if he gets caught I'm screwed!**

 **Akira: I've got a solution for that. Can you do me a huge favor?**

 **Ryuji: What's up?**

 **Akira: You know where Cafe Leblanc is?**

 **Ryuji: Uhh, I think.**

 **Akira: It's by Takemi Clinic. Anyways, I know it's already 6:32, but can you drop off Morgana in front of Leblanc? I'll be there in a bit.**

 **Ryuji: You sure he'll be fine there? What will your guardian say?**

 **Akira: He loves cats! He can live with me while we steal Kamoshida's Treasure.**

 **Ryuji: Alright, be there in twenty.**

 **Akira: Thanks.**

As he finishes typing this, he sees the familiar Porsche 356 roll in front of the hospital, and as the door opens up a man wearing a white coat and white fedora walks out, a surly expression on his face.

As he entered the hospital, Akira could _feel_ the cold, piercing glare Sojiro shot his way. He didn't say a word to him as he approached the front desk. He sign his release form, said a few words to the clerk, and began making his way to the car.

"Let's go."

As Akira got up and started following Sojiro, he could feel a weight develop in the pit of his stomach.

 _'This was going to be VERY awkward ride home...'_

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: So, it's been a month...**

 **Yeeeeaaaahhh I'm calling a hiatus.**

 **I know it sounds kinda lazy, but I'm all burnt out. I might start writing again in a month or two, but for right now I'm going to be taking a break.**

 **Also, a warning for when chapters do start posting again: Since the fic will focus on the aspects of the game where Jokers decisions will particularly affect the story, it may jump entire in-game weeks after we get through the slow intro of the game.  
**

 **Aside from that, let's read some reviews!**

 **worgen16:**

dude thank goodness you continued this story! I am really interested in this, and as you stated before there aren't many persona 5 new game plus fanfictions. I hope you continue this until the end, I want to see how you change things up! p.s. are akira and Ann getting together this play through or are you going with one of the other girls? if you are then might I suggest hifumi togo? she was originally supposed to be a part of the phantom thieves anyway and there are practically no good akira x hifumi pairings. so keep up the good work, I cant wait to see what's next!

 **I'm not going to be spoiling anything, but what I will say is that the option I'm going with is one most people normally don't do. Thanks for reading!  
**

 **Have a Little Feith**

Heck yeah, they put a lot of thought into their stuff. At least, they have been lately. Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse is one good example of them doing this. They say in it that humans, when they Observe a phenomenon, they lock it into place, lessening the effects it has. The main character, Nanashi (which means No-Name/Nameless) and his friends end up going against the God of Creation, YHWH, and forcing him into a form that they are then able to kill. This ends the fighting that particular portion of the Multiverse that is the Shin Megami Tensei series. The first two games, and the Fourth are apparently connected together, and technically speaking, so is the third, in its own way. There is actually a DLC for Apocalypse that has Nanashi helping the other 4 "Messiahs" from each SMT game that's out. The Messiahs are each game's protagonist. The whole series is somewhat messed up. There's quite often a God/Goddess that needs to be killed at the end. Yaldabaoth was actually the first to get as close as he did to conquering the world. Nyx almost killed the world, but was sealed away. Izanami almost deluded the world, but was killed by the "reincarnation" of her husband-brother (it's in the myths, they were the first two gods of Shintoism, thus they were siblings). Yaldabaoth... well, he almost got full control of the world. He was so close. If the Trickster hadn't stopped him, the world would be marching to his tune.

Now... I have a bit of a theory I really like about "fictional" worlds. Somewhere in the multiverse, the setting of Persona 3-5 is real.

Oh! They're going to be announcing some new stuff about P5 around February...? I think...? Atlus Japan dropped a 30-or-so second trailer about "P5R" about a week or two ago. Look that up at some point, don't just rely on my admittedly bad memory. ... I should do that myself, and mark it in my calendar.

As long as it stays Ren/Akira's "canon" sexual preference, I'll continue reading this. I say Canon, because they didn't give any other options for gender preferences, just females. Now, if you could choose at the beginning of the game whether you want to be male or female, and what gender they prefer a significant other to be, that'd be awesome, but I don't see them doing that for a long while. I'd probably end up choosing to either be a male or female, and choosing female for the significant other gender, because normal preference, and Yuri, obviously.

 **Atlas is pretty cool :) Though I do wonder about that Febuary announcement... Persona 5 Arena? Persona 5 Remaster? Please don't tell me it's just the announcement for PQ2 getting localized... I'm still pretty miffed it won't have dubs.  
**

 **Yeah, I wish it was in the vein of P3 portable, where you can pick a gender! Honestly you wouldn't even have to pick a sexual orientation, just allow the player to pick either sex as a romance option. Here's hoping that's what they do for P6! Even though that probably isn't coming out in like a decade...**

 **Thank you all for reading, and sorry for the hiatus!**


	8. Chapter 7: Growing Suppliers

**Chapter 7: Growing Suppliers**

It was starting to get dark out, which greatly annoyed Sojiro, who was driving his responsibility back to his cafe. Honestly, everything was leaving him annoyed, from the inopportunely timed red lights to people who showed little concern on the streets. Akira sat in the back, uncomfortable at the furious silence that had invaded the space between the two. As the yellow Porsche rolled silently through the ever-restless city, he tried to think of something to break the icy silence, regardless of what the response would be.

"... I'm... I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble, Mr. Sakura."

The moment he opened his mouth Sojiro volleyed his complaints and annoyances to Akira. Perhaps he had been waiting for the right moment to talk, or had been considering whether or not to bother, and the expectation to respond was just enough of a push to get him to speak.

"A week! It hasn't even been a week since you got here, and you're already getting in trouble! You're first day of school you got there late, which was something I didn't really mind, seeing as how your education is your own responsibility. If you decide to completely throw your education out the window, that's your choice, but now you're going around breaking windows! Didn't I tell you to watch out for yourself? To not get caught up with other peoples' problems?"

Akira had expected these questions, and took a second to answer his anger. "I couldn't let her go through with it. I know, looking back on it, it wasn't a very smart decision, but I did the only thing I could to save her... I..." Despite the amount of time he took earlier that day to formulate his response, his mind and his voice failed him. He was left sitting there, praying Sojiro would understand him.

Silence once again filled the car and Akira could feel his heart sink. After a few minutes they had arrived back at LeBlanc, and as they pulled in and Sojiro turned off the car, the two sat there in even deeper silence. The moments ground on, until Sojiro sighed, and spoke again.

"Look... I'm not gonna kick you out for trying to save a girl's life. I get it, you're just trying to help. Just use your head and don't do anything stupid that could get you hurt, okay?"

Akira felt a wave of relief as the familiar compassion in Sojiro's voice eased his nerves. He nods his head in appreciation. "Alright. I understand."

Sojiro looked back at him, annoyance in his voice once more. "And you're paying for that window, too! The school didn't waste any time in handing me the bill, even though YOU broke it! I don't care if you have to get a part-time job to get it paid for, you have to claim responsibility for your actions."

The gentlemanly thief nodded again, his terms stern but fair. "Of course."

In his head, however, he was smiling slightly. _'Thankfully I don't have to worry about money right now. After everything last year, I'm stacked! A dumb window shouldn't cost too much...'_

As the two leave the car, and Sojiro begins to unlock the entrance, a familiar doctor with dark-blue hair came into view, walking towards them. Akira smiled, only now remembering the first time he would meet Takemi was in LeBlanc.

"Oh, hey doc. Sorry for being closed, I'm opening up right now." He explains, opening up the door for his customer.

"Seems like I got here just in time. I'll have my usual, please." She says as they walk into the door.

"Alright, just give me a moment to warm up the pot..."

As the two walk into the coffee house, Akira lingers outside to look around. He cups his hands to his mouth and calls for Morgana. _"Morgana? Hey, you there?"_

From alleyway appeared a pompous black cat. "Yeah, I'm here. Ryuji got me here just a few minutes before you arrived. So, any idea where I'm going to be staying?"

Akira nodded. "Yeah, you can hang out with me in LeBlanc. Also, I was wondering if we could visit the Takemi tomorrow after school. We could use some good medication when we go into the Metaverse."

~-J-~

 _April 16_ _th_

As Akira was walking down the path to Shujin, he found himself lost in his own head. Today they would be going back to the Metaverse to make some headway against Kamoshida's Palace. The thing that was bothering him was how far they would be able to get through in one day.

 _'I can remember most of the layout of the place, I managed to bring our old equipment and some unused medicine, and overall I'm going to have stronger Persona than before...That being said, I'm not sure if we could complete it all in one day. Also...'_

In that moment, a single tear rolled down his cheek.

 _'All my money's gone! Why do windows cost so much?! I was going to spend that money on awesome Persona!'_

In his mind's eye, he could see also the most powerful Persona he had ever fused, waiting in the Compendium to be bought back...

 _'Wait... Chi You! No...! Please, come back...!'_

He lets out a sigh, his ears perking at the conversation of two female students.

"Calm down, calm down! Let's go to the clinic. Come on. I'm sure the doctor can prescribe something that'll fix you right up!"

At this, Morgana pokes his head out of Akira's bag. "Remember, we should go visit that clinic today. We'll be able to make it so much farther and longer in the Palace if we could heal without having to use a Persona!"

Joker nodded at this, drifting back into his own thoughts. "You don't have to remind me. I'll go after school..."

~-J-~

Inside Mr. Ushimaru's classroom, Joker wasn't too keen on what was being taught. _'Seeing as how I had already passed everything taught this year, it isn't really important to have to study it over again.'_

In reality, he was just being lazy.

He felt a buzz in his right pocket, and as he checked he could see a group message from Ryuji.

 **Ryuji: Hey, we're meeting up at the hideout after school, right?**

 **Ann: Don't text now. We're in class.**

 **Ryuji: Whoa! You mean you're actually listening to all this crap?**

 **Ann: Yeah, but none of it is really sticking today...**

 **Ryuji: I know, right?**

 **Ryuji: Anyways, hideout after school?**

 **Ann: Where exactly is this "hideout"?**

 **Ryuji: The school roof.**

 **Ann: Wait, we can still go up there?**

 **Ryuji: Yeah, I'll let you in.**

 **Ryuji: Welp, I'll be waiting. Just come on up once school's over.**

 **Akira: Gotcha.**

 **Ryuji: I'm gonna fine you if you're late!**

As Akira clicked off his phone, he couldn't help but notice something. _'I don't really have much of a presence in the group chats, do I?'_

"Hey, Akira!"

A jolt goes down his spine as he looks back up at the teacher, fire and retribution in his eyes. With a start he realizes what's about to happen.

"You! Pay attention! Is that how you listen when someone's talking to you?!"

Akira's nerves stand on end as he prepares to dodge. _'I feel a murderous intent...!'_

Mr. Ushimaru reached for the nearest piece of chalk and clenched it in his hand. He took only a moment to to ready his shot before chucking it towards his student. Timed seemed to slow down for Akira as the white bullet flew towards his forehead. He tilted his head ever so slightly to the right, turning his head to watch it fly by his head.

The chalk clattered to the floor behind him. In the clear, he had a realization.

 _'Wait... This is my moment to look cool!'_

He leaned back on his desk and held his head up, looking out the window as if nothing happened.

The class reaction was instant, whispers overtook the classroom.

"Whoa! That was an epic dodge!"

"That was nuts... Is he a ninja?"

Akira grinned smugly to himself, reveling in the attention that the class would rarely give him. Ann shot him a quick smile, impressed at the move. The teacher was... less than enthused. "Tch... Well, whatever. Moving on."

The class got back on track as Ushimaru demanded the students' attention. Morgana poked out of Akira's desk, a satisfied look on his face. "Ooh, you've got the entire class's attention! Your **Charm** has definitely increased."

 _'You have taught me well, Neo-sensei.'_ Akira thinks with a smirk. The rest of the class goes by in a daze, Akira just spacing out until the end of school.

~-J-~

The final bell for school had rung, and classes were now over. All that were left of the students of Shujin Academy were those that were in tutoring and members of the various clubs the school had to offer.

Them, and the Phantom Thieves, of course.

The four were sat along the roof to discuss the infiltration. Tensions weren't as high as yesterday, since they had established standard protocol the last time.

"Looks like we're all here. Mkay, let's get goin'!" Ryuji was obviously hyped up for the mission, since he was still probably excited and overconfident over his Persona powers. Morgana seemed to have other ideas, however.

"Hold on, it's still too early for us to head for the Palace."

"But why? Don't we just gotta steal that Treasure thing?"

Morgana shakes his head, his voice carrying a stern tone as he had to explain the basics of the Metaverse. "Don't underestimate the dangers of that place. We need to prepare."

"Ain't that Persona shit we got enough to deal with it?"

A glare develops on Morgana's features. "That's exactly what I mean when I say don't underestimate it. You'll die if you mess up in there. So again, we need to prepare before we head in."

Ryuji lets out a sigh of irritation, but otherwise didn't raise any more objections.

"But... how exactly are we supposed to do that?" Ann asked once the opportunity arose.

"I'm glad you asked, Lady Ann." Morgana made sure to shoot Ryuji a smug look, as if to demonstrate how polite Ann was compared to Ryuji.

"First, we need to find-"

 _'A way to heal up, I know, we already-'_

"-better equipment for all of you."

Akira blinked, not expecting himself to be wrong.

 _'Huh, my memory is a little spotty... That MIGHT be bad.'_

"You talkin' about weapons?" Ryuji asks, his head perking up. "I know a kick-ass place!"

Morgan nods. "In that case, you can handle that side of things. The only other thing would be stocking up on medicine. Fatigue is unavoidable in a Palace..."

"And where can we get medicine?" Ann asks, raising an eyebrow. The real question would be whether or not they could get the type of medicine they were looking for without raising eyebrows. It would be a little weird to just walk up to a pharmacist and start asking for drugs, after all.

Morgana smiles. "Don't worry, we know just the place. I hope you look forward to it, Lady Ann!"

"Now then, Akira and I have some business in Yongen, so let's head off for today!"

Akira stands up to deliver one last piece of info. "We probably won't be ready to infiltrate today, and maybe not even tomorrow. I know we don't have much time to steal Kamoshida's Treasure, but above all we need to be ready, that way we can maximize our progress per day. Keep your phones on you at all times, we need a way to contact each other in case of a development. All good?"

"Yep!"

"All clear!"

"Crystal!"

Akira smiles, feeling like things were starting to get back to normal. "Alright! I'll see you all later!"

~-J-~

Akira sat in the examination room of Takemi Clinic, discussing the terms of his business with the prodigious goth doctor.

"... It's your responsibility to take care of yourself. So if that's OK with you, stop by anytime." Takemi says, consulting her other notes as she falls back into disinterest.

Akira nods, grateful. "That'll really help."

She looks backup at the student. "Great. It's nice that you're so quick with the uptake... Saves me the hassle."

She takes a moment to wonder aloud her concerns, although not quite looking for a response. "You're a pretty weird kid, you know? I wonder what you're going to use the medicine for..."

Akira gives an awkward chuckle and an aside glance. "Don't worry, it's not for anything, like, weird..."

 _'Well, that's not really true, but...'_

She just shrugs. "Well, as long as you don't cause any trouble, it's not my problem... This is all I've got right now-"

"I'll take five Recov-R: 100 mg, two Revivadrin, two Healing IV-"

~-J-~

 _April 17_ _th_

"The shop's over this way!" Ryuji nearly yelled as he lead Akira through the bustling streets of Tokyo. As Akira barely managed to keep up with his friend, he couldn't help but think...

 _'Screw broken legs, you could outrun freaking Usain Bolt if you started training again!'_

They passed the square, where Akira could hear a familiar voice calling out to the crowds.

"Everyone, wake up! This country is twisted!"

As Akira passed by, he could only reflect on his words with remorse. _'You're right, Yoshida. It's just a shame that few others can see it right now.'_

Morgana seemed to have the same idea. "This politician's actually saying some decent things, but not many people are stopping to listen..."

Ryuji did not. "Eh, people give speeches all the time. Plus, politics are pretty boring, anyways."

"We're almost there." Ryuji adds. "Just don't get lost in the crowd."

A short walk later and the two found themselves at the entrance to Untouchable airsoft shop. "This is it. Pretty legit, huh? Oh yeah, now that we're here... you know anything about military stuff?"

Akira shrugs, trying to play off how much he actually learned from the owner himself. "I may have a cursory knowledge on firearms."

Ryuji blinks in confusion. "Curs-what? I guess if worst comes to worst we can just ask the shopkeep what they recommend. C'mon, lets go."

They walk into the shop and are immediately greeted by the sight of model firearms plastered against most of the surfaces of the shop, as well as some other merchandise that could be spotted across the shop, such as gas masks and helmets. It was an organized mess of fake weapons.

Akira walks up to the owner, who looks up from his weapons magazine to address the customer before him. A grizzled man with a fierce yet casual complexion, he was the last person you would expect to be a father.

"You know what you want yet?" He asks without much patience.

"Actually, we were wondering if you personally preferred anything in particular?" Akira asks as he lets his eyes wonder around the shop.

"... You lookin' for recommendations?" He asks, raising an eyebrow. With a dismissive look he turns his sights back to the catalog. "... I dunno, just buy whatever looks interestin' to you."

Ryuji scoffs in a similarly dismissive manner. "Ugh, some customer service..."

The owner throws them a glare, before going on with business. "Fine, whaddya want? An automatic? A revolver?"

When Akira looked over to Ryuji, he could see his face overcome with confusion. "Uh, automatic...? Dude, why're you talkin' about cars now?!"

The urge to facepalm was nearly too great for Akira, who knew that it was at these moments where Ryuji could sometimes be a little _too_ dumb for his own good. _'If you don't know about guns, and yet are trying to buy some, then why do you get frustrated when he starts trying to explain guns?!'_

Visibly frustrated, the owner begins to metaphorically try and nudge them out the door. "Listen, this here's an enthusiast shop. My regulars'll be mad if I let a casual like you hang around."

Unfortunately, Ryuji seemed to be on a roll today. "I'm not a freakin' casual! I bought shit from here like, last week!"

Not liking where this was going, Akira pulls his friend aside for a moment. "Hey."

"Yeah, wassup?" Ryuji asks, confused.

"Let me do the buying, alright? I think I got an idea of what we should purchase." Akira reasons, hoping to get through to his friend.

"Uh... Alright." Ryuji was taken aback by Akira's sudden control over the situation that he couldn't really think of what else to say.

Akira turns back towards Iwai, and coolly makes his request.

"I was thinking a Tocachev for me, a Granneli M3 for my friend here, and a Starridge for another friend of ours. Actually... scratch the Starridge, we'll take a Sompton machine gun, instead."

Iwai raises an eyebrow, this time with approval instead of dismissal. "Huh, someone who knows what they're talkin' about. So, you're an enthusiast?"

Akira just shakes his head lightly. "I'm not too familiar with real models just yet. Just... cursory."

~-J-~

After Akira had got back to LeBlanc and was getting ready for bed, he heard a rumble from the dresser. He picked up his phone to see a message from Ann.

 **Ann: I went to visit Shiho today...**

 **Akira: How was she?**

 **Ann: Better.**

 **Ann: She seems to be getting her confidence back, bit by bit.**

 **Ann: Still... Thinking back on what happened... I can't help but worry.**

 **Akira: I'm sure she'll be okay.**

 **Ann: Yeah, I know.**

 **Ann: She's strong like that.**

 **Ann: But... I'll never forgive Kamoshida. He's going to pay for what he caused. No matter what.**

The chat ended there, leaving only Morgana and Akira.

"We're just about ready to go to the Palace." Morgana said. "We just need to craft some infiltration tools. Clean off that desk back there so we can use it."

Akira chuckles. "Chores at this time of night...? But I don't wanna..." He says as he stretches out.

"Oh boo-hoo! Get to work, you're sounding like Ryuji!" Morgana snaps, leaping onto his bed to oversee him.

This garners some laughter from Akira. "Yeesh, like Ryuji? That's some harsh criticism, coming from you." He says, as he begins to clean off the desk.

About a half an hour later and Akira's lockpick was complete. However, it wasn't any lockpick...

"Joker! That's an Eternal Lockpick!" Morgana gasps, freaking out at the sight of the trinket. "With that, we don't even have to worry about standard lockpicks, this one never breaks! Where'd you even get the materials for this?!"

The best response he could give was a simple shrug. "Just had them lying around..."

But it didn't even seem like Morgana was listening to him for that long. "Ooooh! This is going to make looting chests so much easier! Okay!" Morgana stops himself, and takes a deep breath to regain his composure.

"We should be ready now."

"We're heading into the Palace tomorrow. Let's get some sleep."

~-J-~

 _April 18_ _th_

Students were funneling into Shujin's front gates as the school day began. For some reason or another, His Royal Excellency, King Kamoshida was there to greet the students as they walked by.

"Good morning. C'mon, hurry up and get to class!"

He looked to each of the students before his eyes caught Akira. Only the slightest drop of his expression betrayed his true feelings toward the young adult. "Good morning."

Akira walked by, not caring enough to justify a response for him.

"...That admirable behavior won't do you any good once you're expelled."

Akira just continued onward, unfazed by his snide remarks.

 _'You'll be on your knees begging for forgiveness soon enough.'_

~-J-~

The first period for school began, and Akira's phone was already rumbling In his pocket.

 **Ryuji: So I saw Kamoshida at the school gate this morning.**

 **Ryuji: He was just standing there looking at me with this shit-eating grin on his face.**

 **Ann: Ugh, that's annoying... He was probably mocking you.**

 **Ryuji: Honestly, seeing that got me even more fired up about this.**

 **Ann: Yeah, I'm worried about Shiho, but I want to concentrate on our operation too.**

 **Ann: And I won't let myself get exhausted like last time.**

 **Ryuji: The board meeting's May 2** **nd** **, right?**

 **Ryuji: We just gotta take care of him before then.**

 **Akira: My mind is made up.**

 **Ryuji: Same goes for me.**

 **Ann: Me too!**

 **Ann: I'll do my best. No going in without me, okay?**

 **Ryuji: Yeah, you better let us know if you're going into the Palace.**

The conversation was over, and the four simply waited for the day to end. None of them paid significant attention to what they were teaching, and were more concerned with what they could remember about the Palace. Before they knew it, the final period was over and they all began to make their way to the rooftop.

Morgana poked his head through Akira's bag. "It's finally time to set the plan into motion. I bet the others are ready to go and waiting on the signal. Well, I'll leave the planning to you."

 _'Alright.'_ Akira thinks, mentally preparing himself for the long slough ahead.

 _'Mission start!'_

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: Hey everyone, I'm back and I have some news I'd like to share. I know my uploading schedule has been erratic up to this point, and I've often had to have you all deal with long wait times between chapters.**

 **Now, I have some good and bad news.**

 **Good news is that I am now on an actual regular uploading schedule. Every four weeks on Friday, I will be posting a new chapter of The World Arcana.**

 **But that's also part of the bad news. The wait between chapters is going to be fairly long at four weeks, and I'm sorry for that.**

 **The reason for this is that I am currently juggling uploads between this story, and my other long-term project, a RWBY fic called "RWBY: SWAP". I'm on an alternating cycle of uploading for both fics, so that I post a chapter of The World Arcana and then a chapter of RWBY: SWAP two weeks later.**

 **I am posting a new chapter for one of my works every two weeks, but to those who are only reading one of my stories, it will take four weeks before a new chapter will be posted.**

 **Again, I want to apologize for the lack of consistent content. I made a mistake by starting this in the middle of writing my other long-term project, and now you guys feel the consequences. Until I finish either of these projects, I will hold off on uploading any non-one shot content so that my workload remains consistent.**

 **In other news, Persona 5: Golden looks _freaking incredible._ Only way it would be better is if it was on the Switch...**

 **creativesm75:**

very good

 **Thanks!**

 **Broken Requiem:**

I WANT AN UPDATE!  


 **Here, have an update.**

 **Agent 5:**

I can't wait to here the school gossip, and maybe how people's opinions have changed of him.

Awww man. Just when I was starting to enjoy this. The part where he saved shiho from killing herself got my blood pumping though. Can't wait for you to come back!

ZA WARUDO! TOKEWARU OKEDOH!

 **Not something I thought of... but something I will consider!**

 **I'm back! I was honestly so nervous writing that part... I thought so much was going to go wrong!**

 **WRYYYYYYYYY!**

 **Vegrott23:**

Pretty good so far.  


 **Thanks, hope to keep it that way! Btw, the document manager won't allow me to save your name, so I had to misspell it.**

 **DOOT76:**

Ann was Akira's girlfriend in the previous timeline but I find it odd that he just seems to gloss over it alarmist completely, he's not seeing her as nothing more than an acquaintance at best. I know that it's a different timeline but it's stilk weird that he doesn't really seem to feel anything for her especially considering that fact that she was arguably his greatest confidant.

 **There is a reason why his interest seems subdued, but you're right that he isn't reacting accordingly. I should add in a few more moments that shows the struggles Akira faces when speaking to his old friends.  
**

 **Thank you all so much more waiting, and I'll see you all in 4 weeks for the next chapter!**


	9. Chapter 8: Into the Dungeon

**Chapter 8: Into the Dungeon**

Armored demons patrolled the halls of Kamoshida's castle, intent to protect and defend their lord from any manner of threat. No prisoner would escape, no marauder would strike their lord, and absolutely, under no circumstance would a thief steal his Treasure.

For simple tools in a false vision of the world, the Shadows were more intelligent than they seemed. They realized that any serious attempt to invade would have to proceed through the main hall. As a result, security was extremely tight in that area, with several squads of Shadows lurking through the vast space.

No prisoner would escape, no marauder would strike their lord, and absolutely, under no circumstance would a thief steal his Treasure.

But there was a problem. Unbeknownst to the Shadows, and many other guards both real and not, they were a part of a constant statistic. While they patrolled the halls and swept the area, the guards all failed to do one thing that admittedly wouldn't have to be necessary under normal circumstances.

They forgot to look up.

Despite their vigilance, the guards failed to notice the faint creaking of metal as the chandeliers far above their head swayed slightly, to and fro. Shadows fluttered across the ceiling as the Phantom Thieves leaped from chandelier to chandelier, speeding towards the tower that held Kamoshida's most beloved possession.

If one listened closely, you could also hear the soft chuckles of one of the Thieves. "God, Mona... out of everything you could of said..."

Mona had become more and more annoyed at his insistent giggling. Up until this point, he had kept it under wraps by focusing on the mission, but now the shadowy feline had reached his wit's end. "What?! What did I say? What did I say that's making you laugh yourself silly?"

His small outburst put both Panther and Joker on edge. While Mona did his best to control his anger somewhat, he still ended up whisper-yelling. Joker could feel a vein popping out of his forehead. "Could you two _quiet down?_ "

Skull continued, though he did seem to listen to his friend, as his voice quieted somewhat. "Dude, how do you not know what 'cougar' means?"

"Can we stop talking about this?!" Ann complains, uncomfortable with their conversation.

"We were looking for a name related to cats, weren't we? Cougars are fierce, strong, and vicious!" The more Mona tried to explain himself, however, the more Skull laughed. "What?!

"Oh God..." Ryuji wheezed, his laughing high starting to fade. "This is awesome. Calling a girl a cougar is slang, man!"

"Slang...?" Mona asks, his anger starting to fade as fear seeps in. "Slang for what...?"

Before they could continue, Joker butt in again. "Alright, that's enough!" The team landed in the cathedral, Joker pulling out his knife and pistol just in case they run into enemies. Pressing himself against the corner, he peeked out to see a single knight patrolling down the rows.

Closing his eyes, Joker let the world fade around him. A moment passed before the world returned to him in a shockingly abrupt vision. The room returned in a shadowy black, a few containers shown gold and the knight emanated a dangerous red aura. He opened his eyes again, and cursed under his breath. "Shit, it's an Archangel..."

Mona climbed up Joker's back, reaching his shoulders as to also survey the scene. Spotting the Shadow and noticing Joker's apprehension, he knew that whatever Joker saw had to be bad. "What's the plan, Joker?"

The plan was simple; Joker would summon Arsene, knock them down with a dark spell and go from there. It would work, but bad memories of their previous encounter with the powerful Shadow still haunted Joker's thoughts. He would never forget how Archangel had nearly ended their lives before they could bring Kamoshida to justice.

If they were lucky, then the others wouldn't have to experience that this time around. "Follow my lead."

The monstrous knight walked towards the teenagers, autonomously completing it's predefined route around the room. It walked closer,

And closer,

And closer...!

 _'Now!'_ The Phantom Thieve's leader rushed from his hiding place, jumping into the air and landing on the Shadow's shoulders before it could react.

"Reveal yourself...!" Joker ripped the mask from the creature's face, leaping off to allow it room to reveal it's true power. Brilliant white wings unfurled midair, revealing an armored angel with sword in-hand. "Heretics! You will die for setting foot on these hallowed grounds! In the name of King Ka-"

"Arsene, Eiha!" A whirl of blue flame surrounded Joker as the master thief was given form appeared behind him. In a instant, dark tendrils shot up from the ground, striking the Shadow and bringing him to his knees. The team surround it, each of them aiming their guns (or slingshot) at the warrior.

Ann smiles at it's misfortune. "We got you! Time for an All-Out Atta-!"

"You got any money on you?"

The question from Joker throws everyone off. "Payment for my life, eh...? I have 250 yen." The angel replies.

"W-Wait, Joker...!" Mona stutters out in vain.

Joker takes the money from their hand and counts it. "Deal. Now get out of here."

Before any of the other Thieves could argue further, the enemy had disappeared into thin air. It might have said something about how Kamoshida was unbeatable, but their words were soon forgotten as Joker was soon peppered with questions.

"Dude, what was that?!" Skull yells, peeved that they couldn't fight what seemed to be a strong enemy.

"Why did you let him run away? He might go around and tell his friends!" Ann points out, motioning in a general direction.

Joker doesn't want any of it. "Yeah, well, trust me when I say that you don't want to fight these yet. They're way too strong right now."

He stashes the money and walks off, the faint sounds of his muttering was barely perceptible. "Not my fault light spells are killers... Not my fault I have to get my money back... Stupid window..."

~-J-~

Two hours had passed and the four had found themselves a safe haven in one of the classrooms. The four sat around, resting and taking in whatever refreshments they had brought.

Ryuji had a sports drink and energy bar,

Joker brought a thermos of coffee and a biscuit,

Morgana just had some water,

and Ann had a soda, doughnut, sugar cookies and gummy bears.

Needless to say, Ann was still eating well after they had finished. This wasn't a problem, since they were all fine with resting up for a little while longer before heading out. In the meantime, Ryuji couldn't help but marvel at everything Ann was eating. He debated whether or not to say something, opening and closing his mouth repeatedly before finally getting the words out.

"So, you're a model, right?"

Ann looks up from her chocolate bar, an item which I had failed to notice, and nods. "Yeah, why?"

Ryuji shakes his head. "Nothing, it's just that the only thing I ever heard about modeling is that they can't eat junk food. Or, you know, just... food." As he explained this, he kept glancing at the pile of wrappers laying on the floor.

Ann did not like where this conversation was going. "And what, exactly, is that supposed to mean?" Her voice held a dangerous edge.

Without thinking his response through, Ryuji replied: "I'm just surprised you can model while eating so much crap!"

"Are you calling me fat?!"

"What?! I didn't say that!"

"But that's what you meant, isn't it?!

Joker could feel a headache coming on as the two began to argue. Loudly. All he could do was tune out their banter as he tried to read the book in his hands. _'Knowing Ryuji, he probably wasn't even thinking that. It's just that he's too dense to hear himself.'_

Tired of listening to his team argue, he tries to disarm the bomb that was this situation. "Who cares what she eats? She's gorgeous anyways. They'd be idiots for not hiring her." He doesn't look away from his book as he says this.

The room goes silent after he says this, and it takes Joker a moment to realize that it was because of what he had said. He ran the sentence through his head again to see what the problem was.

 _'Who cares... what she eats... she's gorg-shit!'_

Looking away from the book, he sees everyone staring at him. Ryuji and Morgana looked shocked while Ann's face went red.

The mask that Joker wore to protect himself from the horrors of society did little to hide the blush spreading across his cheeks. He looked away from them and hid his face with his book. "That... slipped out."

"Dude... Did you just flirt with Ann?!" Ryuji asked, a laugh welling up in his voice as he said this.

"No, I wasn't flirting. Shut up." Joker just wanted to get through the dungeon with as few issues as possible, and not die in the meantime, whether it be from embarrassment, or a light spell from Archangel. Was that too much to ask?

' _Too dense to hear myself... God dammit, I'm Ryuji!'_

~-J-~

 _Bang!_

A shadow faded away to nothing as a bullet shot through it's head. Joker takes grim satisfaction in his work, before moving on with his team. At this point, they needed to find a way into Kamoshida's treasure vault without having to go through the miniature army stationed in the throne room.

The throne room which they had to go through to get into the treasury.

As they searched for an opening, an idea popped into Ann's head, one that grew more confusing the more she thought about it. "Hey, Mona?"

"Yes, Lady Ann?" The cat responded with a perfect politeness that forced Ryuji to roll his eyes every time he heard it.

"So, like, we don't use real guns, but because Kamoshida wouldn't be able to tell the difference between these and the real things then his shadows think we're shooting them, and that's enough to actually hurt them?"

Mona nods, happy to explain his _expansive_ knowledge of the Metaverse with her. "Exactly. In a world based on what he perceives, so long as it's real-enough looking, he'll believe that our weapons can kill."

"Okay, yeah I got that, but..." Ann says, thinking about how best to explain this. "Does that mean some of our weapons shouldn't really work?"

Mona blinks. "Huh?"

"I mean, these weapons are great..." Brandishing her Coil Whip as she turns to Joker. "Thanks again for finding these, they're great!" She turns back to Mona.

"But it's not like anyone would think it would kill. It looks really... impractical."

Mona was left speechless for a moment, trying to find a reasonable explanation to her rebuttal. "Uhhhh... Well, maybe he perceives things a bit differently. Everyone perceives whats dangerous and fearful differently."

"Dangerous, my ass!" At this point Ryuji joins in while shoving aside an end table in search of another entrance. "No way in hell that Kamoshida thinks your stupid _slingshot_ is a dangerous weapon!" He points out before continuing. "I already said that and you dodged the question!"

Joker also gets confused. "And why do some guns even have a magazine size? I get that they're replicas and all, but their magazines can't actually detach outside the Metaverse, so do they somehow know how many bullets can be held in that particular clip?" As soon as he says this, he catches that he said 'they' instead of just Kamoshida, though thankfully nobody noticed.

Mona quickly gets frustrated. "I don't know, alright? Why is this important?"

Ryuji also gets frustrated. "I wanna know why your dumb peashooter is doing more damage than my shotgun!"

"Listen, I don't know! You're still killing Shadows without a hitch, right? Then stop worrying about it and focus on the task at hand. And stop asking questions I don't have the answers to!" Mona looked up, seeing a window above left from the door. "This way."

The four proceed upwards, jumping through the window and landing on a walkway overlooking the throne room. Inside was the king himself, surrounded by his army of Shadows. "How have you not captured the intruders yet!?"

"Kamoshida..." Ann whispers, hatred seething in her voice.

"We're almost there... We're going to bring him down." Joker said, looking forward to his downfall.

It felt strange to him, facing Kamoshida again. One side of him loathed this, having to let the villains who they managed to stop have another chance at freedom and continue their crimes. On the other hand, he didn't hate Kamoshida any less now than he had last time. Knocking him down a peg was going to be just as satisfying as the first time.

Mona looks between the two, letting his mind wander before giving his input. "I'm almost curious as to what life is going to be like for Kamoshida after we steal his heart. He's not going to aspire to anything, he'll just be... stuck there."

"Good." Ann said, her voice still severe. "I want him to spend the rest of his life regretting what he's done."

Ryuji raises an eyebrow, but doesn't look away from the king. "You know," He said, his voice carrying a soft tone that was rare for him. "I always forget how intense you can be sometimes. Kinda scary, honestly..."

"Of course she's intense, she's a Panther." Joker says, admiration in his voice. "Justice is her calling and fire is her weapon."

It was all an attempt to make the joke sound cool, and it didn't fail to impress the woman in question.

"Fire is her weapon... Alright, I like it! If you can think of more compliments like that, it'd be appreciated!" She said jokingly.

Joker just shrugged. "I'll do my best!"

They laughed and continued on, and just like that the morbid air of their previous conversation disappeared and was replaced with a silent determination to bring down the mad king.

~-J-~

 _April 20_ _th_

The halls were abuzz with conversation about the fliers that had been scattered throughout the school, detailing a mysterious group of thieves stealing the heart of the corrupt physical education teacher.

"Who's responsible for this...!? Did you do this!? Or was it you!?" The target in question was stomping through the halls, trying to disperse the crowds and get them back to their classrooms. At the same time he was trying to piece together who in the crowds would have posted these fliers in an attempt to intimidate him. The students all dispersed, returning to their classrooms so that they wouldn't have to face his wrath.

Three exceptions stood in the nearby hallway, staring daggers at him. _'Of course it's them.'_

He walked over to the two male students, disregarding Ann for the moment. "... Was it you two!?"

Akira wasn't afraid of the man, instead staring him in the eye and challenging his authority. "What if it was?"

The teacher shook his head, frustration growing even greater. "What garbage..." But his anger seemed to abate slightly as he returns to his smug demeanor. "Eh, it's not a problem. You'll be expelled soon enough, anyway."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that!"

It was something Akira didn't expect. The voice came from behind them, and as the three turned around they saw Shiho standing there defiantly facing the man she feared most.

"What do you want, Suzui? Shouldn't you be in class?" Kamoshida spat out, growing weary of this conversation.

Joker was afraid of what was going to happen. Just a few days ago Shiho was unable to say his name... And now here she was, speaking out against him. _'I'm not going to stop her... But I am going to make sure Kamoshida doesn't try anything funny.'_

"I hope they're real, you know." Shiho says, her knees shaking slightly. "The Phantom Thieves."

Kamoshida grins at her, clearly thinking he still has the upper hand. "Oh, really? You think these 'Phantom Thieves' will magically solve all of your problems? Well I have some news for you: You're off the team! You were terrible when you joined the team and you're still terrible! And you know what?"

The grin drops from his face as his voice drops to a growl. "What you said can be taken as a threat Ms. Suzui...!"

"No, it's a promise! Soon, you'll be exposed as the violent, dirty old man you really are!"

In that moment Joker came to fully appreciate Shiho's strength. He already knew how determined she was, and how she could bounce back from pretty much anything, but it took seeing her first-hand like this to learn how powerful she could really be. She stood there terrified, tears forming in her eyes and she still spoke against Kamoshida, the person who had controlled her entire school life. This time, it wasn't fear that rooted her into place.

It was her determination to talk him down.

Joker couldn't help but smile. _'She's strong like that.'_

Kamoshida's face contorted in rage. "How dare you!?"

The P.E. teacher took a single step towards Shiho, and in an instant he found himself stopped by Akira, Ann, and Ryuji. The three stood in a line in front of him, forming a wall that Kamoshida would never be allowed to pass. For a moment, for the smallest fraction of a second Kamoshida felt outmatched, and before he could stop himself he took a step back.

He would never admit it, but in that moment it was those three students that scared him the most.

"Grr... Brats. I know this is your doing. Nothing any of you do matters anymore! You'll ALL be expelled, even you, Takamaki!" He stormed off, his mind in hysterics and his heart now aware of it's greatest desire. The four stood there and watched him disappear from view. They knew what they needed to do, there was nothing more to be said.

It was time to reap their vengeance.

~-J-~

 **Author's Notes: Hey, Everyone! So, yeah, a little late, and a bit short. Sorry. You can blame school for that, but I think the end result is still worth it.**

 **Reviews-**

 **Toni Morrison:**

"The function of freedom is to free someone else."

 **Ooooh that's a cool quote. Where's it from?**

 **Withered Phoenix:**

I'm so glad I found this fic. I love re-do fics and I love your writing and how you drastically change it yet keep it true to heart. Couldn't put it down since I started reading it. I just hope the consequences for changing the past won't come back to haunt Akira. Keep up the great work and don't stress on releasing chapters too quick. Quality is better then quantity in the long run.

 **Thanks, the praise is really appreciated! I would prefer to have both quantity and quality, though I suppose I could substitute quantity for a more consistent uploading schedule.  
**

 **Blank C:**

So akira literally used ZA WARUDO

 **Honestly I didn't even get the reference. I had to look it up on TV Tropes to know how to properly respond. XD**

 **Guest:**

Good nice

 **Thanks!**

 **I thank all of you for reading and see you next chapter, where they finally kick Kamoshida's ass!**


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